Promises in Snow and Ice
by KnighteWolfe
Summary: What do you get when a temperamental actress with a penchant for escaping is given an ultimatum by her elder council? A remembered promise and a shinobi's heart.
1. Chapter 1

Now here's a little story I talked with a fellow author about writing

Now here's a little story I talked with a fellow author about writing. Lovesrainscent spoke on this and we both thought it could be a good story. Hopefully you, the readers will like it as well. On behalf of Loverainscent, Knightewolfe Productions present what could possibly be the first Naruto UzumakixYukie Fujikaze (Koyuki Kazahana) pairing fic.

_**Disclaimer**__**: Naruto is the property of Masashi Kishimoto**_

_**Promises in Snow and Ice.**_

Twenty-five year old actress Yukie Fujikaze climbed the steps to her private on-set trailer and slammed the door. The message she'd just received by courier from the Land of Spring had ruined her good mood. Kicking off her shoes, the most famous actress in the land entered her bedroom and threw herself on to the bed with a loud snort of annoyance. A minute or so later, Yukie heard the door to her trailer open and knew that her present manager had come looking for her.

"What do you want, Misato? Whatever it is I'm not in the mood for it!", snapped the actress as she rolled over and faced the door.

"Milady, I do not know why you are so resistant. You know the council is not going to rest until you're either married or pregnant with your heir. You've already turned down several offers of marriage from young men of suitable rank much to the council's consternation. Princess if you keep doing this, next time you are home for your requisite six month period to rule your land, the council will force you into a marriage of convenience for their prestige.", replied the young woman demurely.

"Dammit, I know that but those old farts need to learn that I'm not ready to settle down, get married, and have children yet. Can't they just leave me alone on that one subject?", cried the on-screen goddess.

Her manager just shook her head. She knew that until they were satisfied the council in the Land of Spring was going to keep pushing that agenda. The old men and women wanted to prove to the five nations that in the seven years since their princess had returned and overthrown the brutal dictatorship of her uncle, the country formerly known as 'The Land of Snow' was back on its feet and ready to be considered an equal trading partner.

Yukie sighed and gazed out the tinted window of the trailer. Was she not allowed to make her own choices now? For you see the actress known for her roles in the 'Princess Gale' series of movies, was in reality: Princess Koyuki Kazahana; present ruler of the former 'Land of Snow '.

Remembering those tumultuous times when Kakashi and his genin team defeated her uncle Doto and his Snow shinobi, Yukie thought back to the words of one young ninja whose sunny personality and 'never give up' actions turned her life around and made her accept her destiny as the Land of Snow's beloved princess.

"_**I wonder how the little gaki is doing now. Last time I saw him was when I stopped in Konoha on a promotional trip two years ago. Back then I was told that he as recovering from one battle or another. At least I was able to bring a little happiness into his life during the caravan's stopover.",**__ thought Yukie as she made preparations to return to the set._

Yukie was walking towards the entrance to her trailer when her murky memories cleared up and she remembered what she'd been told all those years ago. Wondering why at a trying time like this she would remember those asinine words, Yukie exited her trailer and headed back to where she left the poor courier at the mercies of her long-time director and producer.

Returning to her reserved canvas chair, Yukie glanced at the courier and the letter he held in nervous hands. Accepting the letter from her council, Yukie read it. As she did, the last parts of an idea that had been floating around in her mind coalesced into a solid plan. Nodding to herself, Yukie mentally firmed up every facet of her plan.

"_**Now if only the lone wildcard in the deck will act true to his nature," **__thought Yukie as she smirked to herself. _

Yukie's manager and the courier felt a sudden chill in the air as the actress gave the pair an innocent look. It was a look that Misato knew extremely well, a look that promised a world of worry to her and the rest of Princess Koyuki's ladies-in-waiting and promised to give the council for the Land of Spring large amounts of annoyance and confusion. Smirking in satisfaction at the boldness of her plan, Yukie knew she had a few months left before she could put her plan into action. That was good; it gave her time to perfect everything and gather some supplies and put the wheels of her plan in motion.

The council of the Land of Spring was about to learn a hard lesson.

_**Thus ends the start of a new Naruto story with a most unusual pairing. Or at least a pairing I haven't seen as of yet in the world of Naruto fanfics. Let me know what you think.**_

_**Knightewolfe**_

_**Wolfe's Lair**_

_**8/08**_


	2. Chapter 2

Still untitled but still being worked on

_It finally has a title!! I'm so happy!!_

_**Promises in Snow and Ice.**_

_**Chapter 2.**_

In the Village of Konoha there is a large fenced in area on the far side of the village that few of the civilian population venture near. They were intimidated by the fifteen foot barbed-wire topped fence and frightened by the bestial animal sounds that floated out at different times of the day or night. There were the hisses of giant snakes, the roars of irate tigers, and the growl of other wild animals as they dealt in the millennia old dance of life, love, and death. Tokubetsu Jonin Anko Mitarashi loved those sounds. To her, it meant that her domain; Training Ground 44-a.k.a. the Forest of Death- was thriving.

Jumping from building to building with a carefree yet dangerous grin on her face and her ever present stick of dango in her mouth, the recently turned 32 year old woman salivated at the thought of the torture she was going to put a team of ANBU Black Ops through. At the request of her husband, the thirty-three year old Copy Ninja Kakashi Hatake, Anko had agreed to let several teams of his beloved ANBU Operatives spend three weeks in her precious forest to improve their survival skills. Closing her eyes and enjoying the feel of the air rushing across her skin, Anko landed on the ground and stopped to catch her breath for a bit. She turned as the sound of feet landing on the walkway registered behind her.

"Mitarashi-san, please be careful, you're still recovering from the birth of your twins eleven months ago. I know today is the day Lady Tsunade gave you permission to return to work, albeit with vastly limited duties but you do not need to be in such a hurry. Please Lady Mitarashi, take it easy.", begged one of the nurses Anko'd been assigned by Lady Tsunade when it became apparent that the overly exuberant Special Jonin was pregnant.

Anko chose not to answer her nurse and just stood there breathing in the atmosphere of her responsibility. Closing her eyes and basking in the familiar music, Anko quirked one delicately arched eyebrow as a trio of unfamiliar sounds echoed out into the air. Frowning at what as readily becoming apparent as angry words, Anko attempted to put names and faces to the slightly familiar voices. It became a moot point when several of the older, stronger, and taller trees in her playground were struck by chakra enhanced punches and destroyed. Anko's eyes snapped open in blaze of fury. She knew of only two people who could do that much damage with just their physical strength. One was presently sitting in her office looking over reports from her shinobi and filling her cup with her precious hidden stash of sake. The other was _supposed _to be working her shift at the hospital. Narrowing her eyes to slits that scared her nurse to no end, Anko muttered under her breath.

"_I am so kicking her ass!! Konoha's Deadly Cherry Blossom my right fist!! She and her two rivals are destroying my domain!",_ hissed Anko as she sprinted toward the sounds of destruction wreaking havoc on her training ground.

Deeper into Anko's responsibility there was a clearing that showed the recent signs of three vastly different explosions of chakra. When the mistress of the Forest of Death arrived, she spotted the trio of women responsible for the damage: Konoha's Terrible Kunoichi Trio; three of Konoha's deadliest female assassins (after Anko herself of course).

To her left at one point of an equilateral triangle, the new matriarch of the Hatake Clan saw the bright pink hair of Konoha's Deadly Cherry Blossom; Tokubetsu Jonin Sakura Haruno. Fifty feet to Haruno's left stood her best friend, toughest rival, and occasional sparring partner Tokubetsu Jonin Ino Yamanaka. With her full figure and platinum blonde hair gleaming in the mid-morning sun, Anko saw why the Yamanaka was often times referred to as 'Konoha's Shining Interrogator. Stopping just inside the remaining tree line and ignoring her panting nurse, Anko shifted her gaze to the third woman in the triangle. The snake mistress gulped as she recognized the bulging veins next to the eyes sockets holding the light lavender eyes of Konoha's Ivory Widow Maker and the present head of the most powerful clan in the Hidden Leaf Village; Tokubetsu Chunin (an advanced Hyuuga-Clan rank half a step below Jonin) Hinata Hyuuga.

Extending her senses out, Anko lifted her head up and looked at the tree branch above her head. Sitting up there, enjoying a large bowl of popcorn and conversing about who knows what, were two more familiar Kunoichi. The first, newly married TenTen Hyuuga was commenting to her companion Temari Sabaku (a Jonin Ambassador from Suna) about the citrine engagement ring the twenty-three year old woman now sported on the third finger of her left hand.

From her location just inside the tree line where the five young women were gathered, Anko could hear what the three rivals were fighting about and the unsolicited commentary from the pair of observers.

"_You Dark-haired, White-Eyed Hussy, How Could You? Creeping into Naruto-kun's apartment like you did last night!! I Saw you sneaking in", _roared Sakura as she readjusted the gloves on her hands and took a fighting stance.

"_You're Just Pissed Because I Beat You and the Blonde Harlot there!! I Know That Both of You were Planning the same damn thing!! Get Over It, Pinkie, I loved him first! Besides, He wasn't even there",_ retorted Hinata as she settled into her families Jyuuken stance.

"_Harlot? I don't think I like the sound of that Hinata you slut! Anyway, why should I believe you when you say Naruto wasn't home? You could be lying through your oh-so-perfect teeth just to cover up your illicit sexual antics with my beloved Naruto-kun. As for loving him first!! Ha, you never approached him during our years in the academy and told him your feelings!",_ yelled Ino as she settled into a modified version of Rock Lee's Goken stance and prepared for the attack she knew was coming.

_"Oh fer Chrissakes, Ino; you and the Strawberry-haired bitch don't deserve Naruto-kun! He's more man than either of you Uchiha fangirls can handle! My dearest Naruto-kun needs a real woman to tame his wild spirit! Not two fan girls who tore down Lady Tsunade's office door to demand they be artificially inseminated with the sperm from that traitorous Sasuke Uchiha that Lady Shizune was able to get last time the traitor was in the village so that the dammed council could have their precious Uchiha Clan returned. By the way, how are your children now? I hope you suffered severely during those tedious nine months of hell!", _quipped Hinata with a very un-Hyuuga-like smirk gracing her ivory face.

"Ohhh, that's a good one. Hinata sure isn't holding back this time, Temari. I wonder how they're gonna react.", chuckled TenTen Hyuuga as she dug her fingers into the large bowl of buttery popcorn sweetness she was sharing with the ambassador from Suna

"Isn't this a bit out of character for them? I mean, when did Ino and Sakura start plotting to get into Naruto's pants? Hinata, I understand, she's had a crush on the blonde idjit since before that first Chunin exam.

TenTen shrugged her shoulders in lieu of answering her closest Kunoichi friend. She didn't want to be rude and speak with her mouth full. Her parents would have a fit if they found out that their precious daughter had forgotten her manners. Thinking back to the past two years, TenTen wondered the same thing. When and why did Ino and Sakura start love jonesing for the blonde number one knuckleheaded hyperactive shinobi in the entire Hidden Leaf Village? Granted, Naruto had grown from a little semi-attractive twelve year old kid into a dashingly debonair and entirely deadly attractive nineteen year old man, but still: why and when did two of three most-attractive kunoichi of their academy graduating class (who'd had an altogether extremely creepy lust for the brooding traitor Sasuke Uchiha during those formative years) suddenly wanna drop their panties for the still hyperactive ANBU Black Ops captain who had a flair for flashy double S-Class assassination techniques.

TenTen finished her mouthful of popcorn and chuckled as she remembered her husband-the semi-brooding but loyal- Neji Hyuuga telling her the story of Naruto using a self-developed variation of his infamous (and triple S-class, Kage ranked secret) Oiroke and Harem jutsus to eliminate a wanted, non-shinobi playboy who'd stupidly made a pass at Uzamaki's beloved Tsunade-baachan thirty minutes before the Godaime Hokage's much anticipated and long-awaited, for some(Kotetsu and Izumo in particular; they were extremely annoyed each time Tsunade sent Jiraiya on an all-expenses paid vacation via Fist Airways. They got tired every single time the two of them had to approve much needed funds to pay for the incurred damages to the Hokage's office. Damn Tsunade for always wanting the expensive stuff!!), wedding to the one-armed Toad Sannin (and still all-around number one-ranked super pervert in the entire Five Great Shinobi Nations as well as numerous smaller hidden shinobi villages), Master Jiraiya.

Temari no Sabaku (soon to be Nara) smothered her own girlish giggle (something her fiancée, Konoha's Lazy Genius Shikamaru Nara, wouldn't believe) as she correctly guessed what her friend was thinking about. Temari remembered the wedding well. Her sister-in-law Matsuri, while in the mood changes of her early pregnancy, had broken a priceless-and full-crystal punch bowl on the head of her husband the Godaime Kazekage Gaara no Sabaku for some asinine comment he'd made after she'd upended another bowl (filled with a mildly intoxicating and spiked punch) over the head of Konoha's Golden Whirlwind for offering up an extremely explicit toast to the newlyweds during his duties as Jiraiya's best man. Temari waited for TenTen to start the story of how her husband and Naruto, then newly promoted ANBU lieutenants, boldly walked up to the targets' nonsensical palace and requested lodging for Actress 'Yukie Fujikaze' and her entourage for the night.

According to TenTen and corroborated by the head of the Hyuuga Branch House, Naruto (using his 'Oiroke no Jutsu-Yukie' variation) had attempted to seduce the target and ended up assassinating the man with his signature élan and flair before using the 'Fujikaze Harem no Jutsu' to take care of several of the decedents bodyguards.

"You can say that the bum went out happy living his greatest fantasy.", laughed TenTen as she returned her attention to the deadly battle raging below their seats.

Temari was about to comment on TenTen's words when she felt a semi-familiar sense of killer intent boiling nearby. Subtly going on guard as she tried to figure out who the intent belonged to (and why it was so familiar) the eldest child of the former Kazekage let her eyes glide over the surrounding area as she tried to find the source of the evil aura radiating nearby. Temari was about to give her search up when she heard a sibilant hiss less than ten feet from her and TenTen. Jerking her head in the direction of the noise while reaching for a kunai, Temari stopped when she saw the poisonous snake uncurling from around the trunk of the tree. It took Temari less than half a nanosecond to recognize the viper and realize that the two of them and the battling kunoichis below were in some seriously deep shit.

"Umm Ten-chan.", sputtered Temari while backing up.

"Not now 'Mari-chan! This fight's getting real good. My cousin is kicking ass here!", exclaimed the recently invested Matriarch of the Hyuuga Branch Family.

"Ten-chan!"

"_WAIT ONE KAMI BE-DAMMED MINUTE!"_

"TenTen.", pleaded Temari as she slowly returned her drawn kunai to its pouch and made sure she kept her hands faar away from her enormous battle fan sitting nearby.

TenTen whirled around to face her friend with a glower that would do Neji good to find out why her friend was interrupting her enjoyment of the fight.

"_Dammit, what is it Temari? What the hell is it and why the fuck are you depriving me of my joy in watching Lady Hinata whup Sakura and Ino's ass?",_ snapped the irate weapons mistress.

"TenTen, I really think we are in a major shitload of trouble here.", whined Temari as she indicated the snake poised to strike.

TenTen glared, turned to face whatever it was that was ruining her fun….and stopped dead as she saw the swaying King Cobra. She only knew of three people who had that much control over snakes. Of the three: one was dead, one was a missing-nin, and one; the only kunoichi of the trio was due back to work running the Forest of Death that very day. The twenty year old, newly-married weapons mistress had only one thing to say.

"_**Oh fuck!"**_

Quietly sitting on the branch above her prey, Tokubetsu Jonin Anko Mitarashi-Hatake heard TenTen's sudden intake of air as she prepared to warn the trio of women destroying her beloved forest and swung down to face the two young women of status while making a hand sign. The only things TenTen and Temari saw before passing out were the familiar trench coat, mesh shirt (barely restraining the pair of milk-heavy breasts of the still nursing mother), and pissed off evil grin of death personified before two more unseen vipers wrapped around their throats and covered their mouths to keep them from sounding the alarm. The last thing they heard was the elite assassins' devilish chuckle and her taunting words.

"I can't have you warning the three dumbass broads below about my arrival before I can punish them, now can I?", muttered Anko evilly while gently and purposefully caressing the throats of her two victims with her kunai and leaving a thin trail of vibrant red blood on both of their faces.

Anko was disappointed when her pair of victims passed out before seeing her lick their blood from her knife. Sighing to herself in frustration at her denied satisfaction, Anko turned her attention to her attendant and gave her a message to take to the Hokage.

"And Natsumi, make sure those battling kunoichi don't see, sense, or hear you leave. Otherwise, I will be quite disappointed in you. I take it you know what will happen if I become disappointed, don't you.", Anko stated silkily before turning her attention to the three vandals below and thinking of new and…..inventive ways to punish the interlopers for their vandalism.

"Yes ma'am. I promise they won't hear me ma'am.", croaked Natsumi as she hurriedly gathered up the hem of her battle skirt and shunshined away with alacrity.

Natsumi knew exactly how her mistress took revenge when she was disappointed. It could get……bloody.

Anko ignored the nurse and glanced at the two unconscious kunoichi with a thoughtful look on her face.

"Okay now, how should I make sure you two don't get away before your punishment? Oh, I know.", mused Anko.

Seconds later, Temari and TenTen were tightly (and intimately) bound with what Anko called her 'Penitence Rope'. Although, Anko had lifted an interested eyebrow when TenTen lustily moaned as the 32 year old Jonin tightened the knots situated between TenTen's legs and in the valley of her breasts. The eyebrow lifted higher and Anko licked her lips in anticipation when she spotted the rock hard nipples jutting against TenTen's shirt.

_**"Ohhh, who knew that the matriarch of the**__**Hyuuga Branch Family was into bondage? Neji, Neji, Neji, Neji, what naughty things have you been practicing with your wife? This bears further investigation. I wonder if my darling Kakashi-kun would mind tying me up like that? I know I'd damn sure be game. Oh, I gotta tell Kurenai about this. Kukukukuku, tonight's going to be an interestingly stimulating and erotic night at the Hatake Clan Compound. That reminds me; I need to stop at my favorite 'toy store' on my way home from work this evening and pick up some more rope. I better get the natural stuff when I do. Those rope burns are gonna turn me on! Kakashi's so getting it tonight!", **__mused Anko as an unnoticed line of drool dangled from the corner of her mouth._

With her plans for the evening set, Anko turned her attention back to Hinata, Ino, and Sakura. Performing some more hand signs, she wondered how the trio of kunoichi beneath her would react to her 'Penitence Rope' and the new knots. After seeing TenTen's reaction to the rope, Anko told herself that she would pay to see how the virgin head of the Hyuuga Main Branch Family would react to her actions.

"I'd pay more to be the one doing the tying.", Anko happily giggled before back-flipping off of her branch and sending her snakes to…restrain the three nineteen year olds.

Down below, Hinata was preparing to send a Jyuuken strike to Sakura's chest when she felt something scaly coil itself around her lower body. Glancing down, her blood froze. Bringing her face back up to see her opponents, Hinata choked when she saw Sakura and Ino giving her confusing looks of their own as similar things were happening to them. Once neither of the three could move a millimeter, a familiar trench coat wearing figure stepped out from where she had been leaning against one of the several destroyed trees. Seeing the second most famous wicked grin in all of Konoha, nay, in all of the Five Great Nations, Hinata started to panic.

"You three have desecrated my forest _AGAIN!_! I know I've been gone for awhile, but it hasn't been that long. I've warned the three of you time and time again about this. Now I'm going to make you pay most dearly. Let me explain how I'm going to punish you (if that old bat, Tsunade will let me) and what exactly I'm going to do.", Anko stated calmly before going into a lengthy, detailed, and gruesome explanation of what was coming to the three hardheaded kunoichi.

The screams of terror that rang out over Konoha from the Forest of Death lasted for several hours.

Ahh, Konoha's Forest of Death, where life is worthless, and the torturous shouts of Shinobi who ran afoul of the Mistress of Death lasted for insane amounts of time.

In a land far away from Konoha, actress Yukie Fujikaze glared at the calendar depicting the last sixty days before her current tour of duty as the most famous actress in the Fire Country ended and she returned to the Land of Spring and once again took up her birth name, title, and birthright as Princess Koyuki Kazahana, benevolent ruler of the Land of Spring.

Presently, Yukie was relaxing (or trying to at any rate) in the whirlpool bathtub of the hotel suite the producer and director of her latest movie had made reservations with for the entire cast and crew to use during the final month of shooting. Sighing to herself, Yukie gave the heavens a grin and thanked her guardian deity that she didn't have to stay in her trailer for these last few scenes. In fact, Yukie's private, on set trailer had been cleaned out and sent back home for a two month long inspection where it was completely dismantled and every system checked, repaired, upgraded, or replaced. By the time Yukie returned home, the inspection would be complete and the trailer (which had seen her through her entire acting career thanks to her previous manager, the late Sandayu Asama) would be in the process of being rebuilt to her non-negotiable specifications.

When the overhaul of her trailer was complete, Koyuki and her ladies in waiting (with whom she often ignored suggestions from her council regarding her little home) would start picking the new furniture and fixtures for her little home away from home. Every piece of furniture from the dining area table to the small couch in the main room of the trailer was either ordered or hand built in the Land of Snow. Even the trailers bathroom equipment was replaced. The only pieces not replaced (upon pain of death) during the overhaul were Yukie's bedroom suite. She'd kept the same bed, chest of drawers, mirror, dresser, night stand, and vanity table she'd acquired when she bought the trailer second hand from an older actress who had retired from the spotlight. Yukie felt that the pieces of classic furniture were one of her links to Sandayu.

Shifting her train of thought away from the late warrior-turned manager-turned warrior, Yukie pondered the conversation she'd had with her director and producer at a private dinner for the three of them. She was happy that they had decided to help her enact her plan to escape from the actions of her council, but worried that the elderly assholes would send out the shinobi from the Hidden Snow Village (now allied to The Land of Spring and loyal to Princess Koyuki) to retrieve their wayward princess from wherever she escaped to. Yukie was even more worried about how those shinobi would treat the cast and crew when it became apparent that at least some of them had had something to do with Princess Koyuki's disappearance.

"Hopefully, when that time comes, I'll be busy with my Naruto-kun and he'll be busy keeping me happy. I'm going to leave enough clues that only Naruto can figure out where to 'find' me. And when he does, I'm making damn sure he doesn't leave my bed for at least two days if not more. It'll be his late birthday present from me.", chortled the screen goddess as she evilly rubbed her hands together.

When her 'Mad Scientist' moment passed, Yukie checked her watch and decided it was time to get out of the tub and go to bed to dream happy (erotic) dreams of her favorite blonde. Climbing out of the lukewarm water, Yukie reached for the full-length towel hanging from the heated towel rod and wrapped the warm and fuzzy gaily decorated terrycloth around her dripping wet and still firm naked body. Once wrapped in the material, the actress stepped the few paces over to the black marble sink, dropped her towel to the floor and inspected her body with a critical eye before retrieving her sea foam green panties from the counter and slipping her long, lightly tanned legs into the openings and sliding the delicate material up to cover her intimate folds in their satin embrace. Letting her soft fingers and their perfectly manicured nails linger over her warmth for a second, Yukie imagined how it would feel when she let the one she loved caress her velvety folds with his strong fingers and involuntarily swooned at the erotically charged picture.

Shaking her head and turning to the black terrycloth robe hanging from the hook embedded in the wall for such a purpose, Yukie slipped it on and reveled in its warmth as she loosely tied the belt and made her way into the bedroom where her golden yellow sleeping yukata with its bright blue highlights lay on the queen-size bed. Discarding her robe as she crossed the deep plush carpet toward the bed, Yukie idly gazed around the room at some of her most precious belongings.

There on one wall was a poster from a movie she did two years previous of her and her co-star locked in an increasingly passionate kiss from one of the love scenes. Even though his hair had been dyed black and his birthmarks covered up with movie make-up (he'd violently protested against the use of the powder, much to her amusement), Yukie recognized the piercing blue eyes of her prey. In order to keep his real name secret from enemies of Konoha and of his birth family, Naruto had acquiesced to using his father's first name and a common last name to keep his real identity a secret.

The night of the movie's premiere, Yukie had gotten extremely pissed off when 'Akamaru, Minato' had refused to escort her to the star-studded premiere gala and had thrown the grandmother of all hissyfits, much to the chagrin of her ladies-in-waiting and the elder council from the Land of Spring. The paparazzi, on the other hand, had enjoyed the tantrum immensely and had gotten tons of photos for the scandal rags. Naruto (there as a subtle bodyguard for the star) had grudgingly agreed to transform himself into his silver screen alter ego and dutifully escort Yukie to the premiere so that the opening could go smoothly. Of course Yukie being who she was had most definitely abused Naruto's kindness and had, immediately after the movie, replayed the lip-lock scene portrayed in the poster on the red carpet in front of the theatre much to the delight of the gathered press, the amusement of Lady Tsunade who had come to the premiere on Jiraiya's arm, and the horror of three of Konoha's deadliest kunoichi who were at the premiere providing bodyguard duty for the Hokage.

Across from that poster was a picture that was a bit confusing to those seeing it for the first time. The photo was of Yukie and, wonder of wonders, Princess Koyuki Kazahana at some big formal event the council had planned. Once again, Naruto had come through. Since the event was during the time Yukie was acting, she had to somehow appear at the same place as her birthright. Naruto has used his 'Oiroke no Jutsu-Princess Koyuki variation' to keep the council from getting in trouble if their princess didn't show. Yukie had been jealous when Naruto (or Naruko as the hyperactive Tokubetsu Jonin called his feminine alter ego) wore Yukie's royal garments and looked many times better in them than Yukie did herself. And dammed if the clothes fit Naruko like a glove!

Sighing to herself, Yukie used a genin-level jutsu her Snow Shinobi had shown her to turn off the light and turn on her radio. After an attempted coup d'etat by some rebellious shinobi was put down by the appearance of the Golden Whirlwind of Konoha and some of his friends (including a very miffed Kazekage), one of the Snow Ninja Jonin had requested that one of the Hyuuga's present use their Kekkai Genkai to see if Princess Koyuki had some, if any, chakra reserves. She did but her reserves were so small that they were nearly non-existent.

Climbing under the covers and reclining, Yukie rested her head on the pillow, closed her eyes, and drifted off into the domain of Mr. Sandman dreaming of little boys and girls running around the palace with black and yellow hair as he and her beloved watched over them.

While Yukie Fujikaze was dreaming of a certain bewhiskered nineteen year old blonde, said blonde's superior was sitting in her office glaring at the grinning matriarch of the reborn Hatake Clan.

Tsunade, the Fifth Hokage of the Village Hidden in the Leaves, groaned as she dropped her head into her hands as the unrepentant Mistress of Training Area 44 explained what she had found the five bound kunoichi doing to her forest. The five were presently lying on the floor of Tsunade's office where Anko and four of her clones had haphazardly tossed them upon entering.

"I am very disappointed in the five of you. Sakura, Ino, and Hinata with your reputations; the three of you should know better than to do what you did. TenTen, you're a year older than those three and should've stopped it before it got out of hand. You knew exactly how your three friends felt about Naruto yet you not only didn't stop the developing brawl but brazenly sat in a tree and watched. Temari, you are not a kunoichi of Konoha and as such, I can't allow Lady Hatake to discipline you like she can your four partners in crime. However, upon finding out of your gross ineptitude, I had no choice but to inform the Kazekage. As you can probably guess, Lord Gaara was extremely unsatisfied with your actions. Gaara was so upset that he sent his reply by the fastest messenger hawk in Suna. Do you know what his reply was?, asked Tsunade as she shifted in her seat.

"No Lady Hokage, I do not know what his response was. I will accept any and all responsibility for my actions of lack of actions and will not appeal any punishment Lord Kazekage assigns me.", Temari replied with a subtle hint of smugness in her voice.

Hearing the faint smugness in the voice of Suna's Ambassador as she assumed that she was in the clear, Tsunade had to smother a smirk. Gaara, who knew his older sister real well and guessed exactly what she was going to do, had let Tsunade know in his response that whatever punishment Tsunade herself deemed fit for his sister, he would certainly agree to it. In addition to the punishment Tsunade was going to sentence Temari to, Gaara was in the process of temporarily demoting Temari from the rank of Jonin to the rank of Chunin and assigning her as an instructor at the Suna Ninja Academy for the foreseeable future when she returned home. Preparing her announcement, Tsunade started to reach into the drawer where she knew she had a hidden stash of sake. She stopped when Shizune (who was standing next to the seated Tsunade) kicked the drawer in question closed and trapped Tsunade's hand in the process.

"TenTen, Hinata, Sakura, and Ino; are you ready for my decision?", asked Tsunade while casting a sideways glare in Shizune's direction (Shizune merely kept the look of innocence on her face and her foot against her superiors' sake drawer).

"Yes Lady Hokage. As senior kunoichi here, I shall speak for all of us except Ambassador Sabaku and say that we will accept any punishment you so decide.", stated TenTen.

"Very well then; TenTen Hyuuga, Sakura Haruno, Ino Yamanaka, and Hinata Hyuuga; I hereby demote the four of you from your present kunoichi ranks to the rank of Genin. With your temporary demotion comes the need for the four of you to have a Jonin Sensei like all Genin. Therefore I am assigning the four of you as a team under…..Anko Mitarashi-Hatake. The four of you will follow all of her orders as if they were coming from me. You'll also accompany Anko on each and every mission she undertakes for the good of Konoha. Hinata, I know that your rank as Tokubetsu Chunin is a Hyuuga-only rank but I've talked with your father and Lord Hiashi has agreed to step in as temporary head of the Hyuuga Clan with vastly restricted clan head powers during your temporary demotion.", stated Tsunade with a straight face.

The blonde Hokage observed as the mouths of her four kunoichi dropped in shock. In all of the history of the office of Hokage, nobody who'd made it to Tokubetsu Jonin and Chunin ranks had ever been demoted all the way back to Genin no matter how serious the offense. It was just unbelievable that Lady Tsunade would do such a thing. TenTen started to protest but the sudden glare from the Hokage along with the little bit of killer intent the older kunoichi leaked curtailed her protest. Nodding her agreement at the rank reduction, TenTen stepped back and waited for Tsunade to dismiss her and her friends.

Putting the four Konoha Kunoichi out of her mind for the present, Tsunade turned to the lone Suna Kunoichi and passed her the message from her brother and watched as the twenty-three year old blonde Wind Mistress paled so much as to look like a distant relation (very distant and blonde) of Hinata Hyuuga. Seeing the younger woman's mouth opening but not hearing any sound at all emanating from it, Tsunade turned to the grinning visage of Anko Mitarashi (who'd correctly guessed what was about to happen).

"Anko Mitarashi-Hatake, I am hereby adding a Chunin to your new team. I have made my decision and have Lord Kazekage's support in rendering Temari no Sabaku's punishment for her actions in Training Area 44. As soon as I am finished with your genin team, I will send a message to Lord Gaara with my decision. In the meantime, I have a Low B-Ranked mission for your newly formed team to perform. You and your team need to get packed and prepared. I will brief the six of you on your mission later this afternoon since this mission requires an evening departure. I believe that once Team Six-Six is prepared, you'll have a few hours to get them trained in the teamwork required for this mission. And Anko, train them well.", said Tsunade with an innocent look.

The five Kunoichi looked on in fear as a nasty grin spread across Anko's face. They knew that in addition to their demotion, they were in some really deep shit.

"I'll train them to the utmost of my ability Lady Hokage. When it comes time for my team and I to depart, I promise they will be extremely well-trained and ready.", chuckled Anko as she rewrapped the rope used to bind the five around her arm.

"Anko, this time can you go easy on the welts, bruises, cuts, and blood? I need those five in tip-top shape for this mission? You can still use your 'Penitent Rope' on these five as you see fit.", commented Tsunade as she returned her attention to her paperwork and took a perverse pride in the scent of fear suddenly expressed by TenTen and her accomplices.

Anko frowned as the Hokage's restriction on the punishment she could dish out became apparent. Gritting her teeth in a mild level of anger, Anko turned to the five young women shaking in their boots and ordered them to go home and get prepared for their training. Seeing and smelling their fear, Anko felt her libido rise and wanted to rush home for some before mission 'quality time' with her husband. Just as she was about to jump out the window, Tsunade called Anko over to her desk. Checking around to make sure that the five doomed kunoichi had truly left, the older woman asked the younger woman a question.

"Who were Hinata, Ino, and Sakura fighting over? I know they have their disagreements but a full-on destructive fight that damaged several acres of your responsibility. What the hell Anko?" queried Tsunade.

"Do you even have to ask, Tsunade? Those three were fighting over our beloved Golden Whirlwind, Naruto Uzumaki. From what I could gather, Hinata snuck into Naruto's apartment in a quest to seduce Naruto and finally lose her virginity. It seems that Ino and Sakura had the same idea but Hinata beat them to it. So as expected Sakura and Ino were pissed, Hinata was smug, while TenTen and Temari wanted to watch.", answered Anko.

Tsunade just shook her head in astonishment; her adopted brother was suddenly a popular figure among the women-both ninja and civilian-of the village. When she had gotten into the office this morning, Tsunade had found several requests from several of Konoha's single women and single women from allied villages to marry one Naruto Uzumaki. Being the protective older sister type, Tsunade had gleefully turned them down by enthusiastically stamping them with her favorite rubber stamp (A big stamp the size of a small book that had 'DENIED' engraved in the rubber).

Turning to the purple-haired woman standing by the window, Tsunade asked her how long it was going to take her to get her temporary team ready.

"Not long, Lady Hokage. Not long at all. Now if you'll excuse me, I have a really pressing matter to attend to at home!", stated Anko lecherously.

(Somewhere on the other side of the village in his Clan's reopened compound, Kakashi Hatake-now wearing the snow white face mask that signified his position as head of the Hatake Clan instead of his usual black mask-shuddered as he felt a familiar erotic intent floating across Konoha. Recognizing the intent, the Copy-nin tried to hurriedly find a babysitter for his eleven month old twins: Sugumo and Rin Hatake so he could disappear from his home before his wife returned. If he was still there when Anko arrived, Kakashi knew that he wasn't going to get any training done for the rest of the day.)

"Oh, okay Anko. Don't wear Kakashi out too much today. I'll still need him later to help Iruka with something.", answered Tsunade.

Hearing no reply, Tsunade looked up. All she saw was a purple blur jumping from rooftop to rooftop. Shrugging her shoulders, Tsunade returned to her paperwork. Not surprisingly she was confronted by another request for a marriage to Naruto Uzumaki. Denying this request like she had all the others, Tsunade let her poor abused hand drift down to her hidden sake again only to have Shizune again keep her from reaching for her stress-relief potion. Shooting a glare at the younger woman that could freeze an experienced Jonin in their tracks at five thousand paces, Tsunade started to curse until Shizune reminded her of her doctor's orders.

"Lady Tsunade, you know that the doctor told you that you could not drink any alcoholic beverages in your condition.", chastised Shizune.

"Dammit, Shizune, dealing with those five, especially Hinata, Sakura, and Ino and their unrelenting crush on that blonde moron stresses me out!", snapped Tsunade as she leaned back in her chair.

Shizune nodded while checking her watch. It was time for Tsunade's doctor-mandated two hour break. Reaching down and pulling Tsunade's chair out, Shizune checked the stacks of paperwork on the massive desk of the Hokage. Seeing that before the interruption, Tsunade had gotten a good bit of work done, Shizune helped her friend to her feet. Once the fifty+ year old woman with the body of a twenty year old was standing, Shizune glanced at Tsunade's rounded belly and wondered how much longer Tsunade had until the blessed day she gave birth to her first child. Shizune returned her attention to her boss when the older woman whined that her back was hurting and her breasts felt larger than usual.

"Lady Tsunade, you know that your breasts are heavy with milk and that's why they feel larger. They are larger in fact, when I purchase your bras for you I've had to start buying the next bigger size. Do you want me to send for your husband, Tsunade? You always feel less cranky when he gives you your daily massage.", stated Shizune as she helped her very pregnant boss to the private resting quarters attached to the Hokage's office.

"Shizune, one of Jiraiya's massages is what got me into this predicament in the first place, dammit! If he hadn't been in there and adamant about getting some rest during the day, I wouldn't be pregnant in the first place!", exclaimed Tsunade in a huff as she sat down on the very soft mattress and crossed her arms over her ample bosom (or tried to).

Shizune heard the excitement in Tsunade's voice that she so desperately tried to hide and knew that more than anyone, Tsunade was ecstatic about her first pregnancy. Before she could comment, there was a subtle gust of wind and a familiar mint smell as the Hokage's husband shunshined in with the bag full of massage lotions draped over his shoulder. Shizune tried to ignore the stump of what remained of Jiraiya's left arm when he fought his battle against the head of the Akatsuki Organization a few years back.

"Hey ladies, it looks like I'm right on time!!", chuckled Jiraiya in his familiar teasing baritone as he set down the massage implements and gave his wife the crooked grin she so loved.

Shizune sighed in resignation as her boss reverted into a giggling schoolgirl whenever Master Jiraiya was around and quietly left the Sannin couple to the love she saw between them. Preparing to close the door, Shizune wondered when her crush would realize that she loved him as much as Tsunade loved Jiraiya and then some. Again checking her watch, Shizune smiled at the time she saw there. If she was quick, she could go to the cafeteria and watch as her crush ate his meal. Before she could exit the room, Tsunade asked her a question.

"Shizune, where is Naruto anyway?? I haven't heard a thing from him since he said that his time as one of the new Twelve Ninja Guards of the Fire Daimyo and his exchange duty with the Twelve Artic Foxes protecting Lady Koyuki and the Twelve Desert Tigers protecting the Daimyo of the Land of Wind was complete?", asked Tsunade.

"I don't know my lady but I did send Shikamaru Nara and Kiba Inuzuka to meet up with him and the Fire Monk Sora several days ago.", answered Shizune as she edged towards the door.

Tsunade let loose an expressive groan that metamorphosized into a high-pitched girlish squeal of delight as the strong hand of her husband deftly slipped under her jacket and undid her bra before returning to the table to retrieve a large towel he stretched out over Tsunade's back as she slipped her arms out of her jacket and brassiere.

"Oh great, the party boy posse!! I wonder how much trouble they're gonna get into this time. Jiraiya, do you how much I hate it that you taught that blonde baka how to be charming during your training trips? After every mission he undertakes, I get so much paperwork from different lands wanting to marry off their daughters and single women to him. Geez it's annoying!!", ranted Tsunade before succumbing to the ministrations of her husband.

Jiraiya looked at Shizune and winked before mouthing something that brightened her day.

_"Get going! Your crush forgot his lunch today and I told him that I'd have somebody deliver one for him. He should be in the cafeteria in five minutes. When you leave, check the top of your desk and take what you see with you. Now go, I'll take care of Tsunade and keep her busy for the next three hours. My dear wife is gonna get some sleep today even if I have to use a sleep jutsu on her. See you later Shizune!", _mouthed the Toad Sannin as he bent to his task.

Shizune gave the older, but still roguishly handsome man a peck on the check before shunshining away with a puff of lavender scented smoke. The last thing she saw before she disappeared was Jiraiya leaning down and pressing a gentle kiss to the side of Tsunade's swollen belly.

Seventy-five miles away, the one shinobi Lady Tsunade was worried about was just disembarking from a train with his fellow member of the Twelve Embers, Sora, a monk from a nearby Fire Country Temple who had been exposed to some of the chakra of the nine-tailed demon sealed within his friend. The two looked around and spotted the group of Sora's fellow monks there to escort Sora back to the temple. Sora turned to his friend and raised the bandaged arm that hid his curse in farewell.

"Take care my friend. I look forward to our next meeting and rejoining our fellow guardsmen. We'll see who has improved the most in that time.", stated the dark-haired man wearing the familiar white robes of his sect.

"Hehehe, just make sure you have some medic-nins ready to take care of your wounds when we do, Sora my friend. I won't go easy on you.", replied Konoha's Golden Whirlwind.

"We'll see Naruto. We'll see. Next time, let's restrict ourselves to three-tails each. I believe it will take the Daimyo and his carpenters and gardeners several months to repair the damage we caused while dealing with the attack by those unknown shinobi. I don't think they were ready for the appearance of one nine-tailed demon fox, much less his six-tailed demon fox back-up.", Sora chuckled as he started to head towards his welcoming party.

Naruto Uzumaki, also known as Konoha's Golden Whirlwind and the most legendary hyperactive knuckleheaded ninja in the entire Land of Fire nodded as he hitched his traveling bag further up on his shoulder, straightened his stance, and walked away from the train station towards the hotel district to find a room for the night. Oblivious to the looks from the bystanders; the six foot one, two hundred pound Tokubetsu Jonin headed into the city after casting one more look at the disappearing form of his friend.

On the other side of town, two ninja hurried towards the railroad station. Shikamaru Nara, the twenty-year old Lazy Genius Jonin of Konoha glanced at the familiar form of the nineteen-year old leather coat wearing figure of his fellow member of Konoha's Rookie Nine, Kiba Inuzuka. As he let his look flow over the rugged man, Shika couldn't miss the glint of platinum coming from the third finger on the left hand of the expert Tracker-nin without thinking about the similar weight that would soon be gracing the same finger of his hand.

Kiba Inuzuka had, wonder of wonders, been the first of the Konoha Twelve to get married. On the occasion of the tracking experts' seventeenth birthday, the gates of the Inuzuka compound had been closed to everyone, including the Hokage for the private ceremony occurring within. When it ended thirty-six hours later, Kiba and his new bride (a member of another family of ninja dog handlers who specialized in training their young shinobi and kunoichi in how to train and work with attack dogs) Aisha Kurimitsu, exited the compound in their marriage attire and went searching for their friends to inform them of the nuptials.

Now standing six feet four inches tall and towering over the five foot ten inch Shikamaru, Kiba strolled through the street with the devil may care reckless grin he was known for though now it was a bit tempered by a bit of the maturity he was forced to quickly develop after his marriage. At the reception, Aisha had laid down the law of how she expected him to act when he was home. The five foot eight, one hundred thirty-five pound kunoichi with her wild reddish-brown hair styled just right had backed up her threat of repercussions of his antics by giving Kiba a leather couch with his name on it as a wedding present, much to the delight of Kiba's sister Hana.

The couch presently sat in the game room of the small house Kiba and Aisha shared on a piece of land connecting the Inuzuka compound with the Kurimitsu compound. Kiba always boasted that he had yet to spend the night on his couch to his friends (but he had spent a couple of nights in the doghouse Aisha had gotten him on their first anniversary).

Shikamaru sighed. In two months, like it or not, he was marrying the Suna Wind Princess. Shika knew he loved Temari and he knew that she loved him. Yet he was worried about how they were going to manage their marriage being from two different hidden villages that up until seven or eight years previous had been mortal enemies. Shikamaru was also worried about how his future in-laws AND the entire Hidden Sand Village would accept the marriage. Well he didn't have to worry about Gaara too much. The Kazekage was busy with being wrapped around his 12 month old little girl, Chiyo's, little finger. Of course Matsuri made sure that the Kazekage was humbled by having him take their daughter to work with him just about everyday. Changing the dirty diaper of a giggling baby girl (who had impeccable aim) while members of his council laughed in the other room, humbled the mightiest of men (Gaara had taken to keeping several changes of clothes in his office each time he had to watch chibi-Chiyo).

"Hey Kiba; can I ask you a question.", said Shikamaru as the pair turned up the street heading towards the train station.

"Sure, Shika go ahead.", replied the dog trainer with a knowing look. Kiba had been expecting Shikamaru's question during their entire trip.

"What is it like being married? I mean, with my impending nuptials and our abnormal lives what does it take to make a marriage work?"

"Getting cold feet, Shika? I don't think that Lord Kazekage would be pleased if you backed out of the wedding. Not to mention what Temari-chan would do to you."

Shikamaru shuddered as he thought about that. It wasn't Gaara or Temari he was worried about if he stood her up at the alter. The Lazy Genius was more worried about Kankuro's reaction to his backing out. The puppet wielding Suna Jonin had already shown Shikamaru the specially designed puppet he'd built for Shikamaru if he dared to either back-out of marrying Temari or he dared to cheat on her after they were married. Needless to say, Shikamaru was suitably impressed and scared at the same time.

"_**Not to mention what my parents would do if that happens! Mom has taken quite a shining to Temari-chan and dad is so whipped that he would do anything mom said if I displeased her by doing something that…troublesome!",**__ thought Shikamaru as he spotted a familiar tall blonde wearing a black sleeveless trenchcoat with a golden design around the edges that signified cyclones._

Just as he was about to call his unpredictable friend, Kiba asked Shikamaru several questions that would disturb him for the rest of their retrieval mission.

"Shikamaru, do you love Temari with all of your heart and soul? Would you die for her? Would you kill for her? Would you protect her with your life, even if it means giving up yours? Would you want to start a family with Temari no matter what her family and village say? If you can answer any of those questions with a positive answer, then you shouldn't have to worry. If you can't then all I can say is that you need to search your soul and find the answers that feel right before you sentence both you and Temari to a hell neither of you deserve. Now let's go grab Naruto and make him take us out for drinks. You know he has a lot of extra disposable income to spend.", commented Kiba before running up to the blonde man waiting for them ahead.

Shikamaru thought about what Kiba had said but stopped when it became too troublesome. Reaching into the pocket of his Jonin vest for his pack of cigarettes and lighter, Shika remembered his sensei and wondered what Asuma would say in this situation. Shaking his head and extracting one of the menthol cigarettes from a small coastal village in The Land of Wave, Shikamaru placed the filter between his lips and expertly flicked his lighter to torch the cigarette to life. Snapping his Zippo shut and replacing it and his pack in his pocket, Shikamaru took a deep drag and let the soothing smoke pour out of his nostrils as he looked up at the ever-present clouds in the darkening indigo sky.

"Hehehe, I'll think about all of that tomorrow. Right now it's time for three members of Konoha's Party Boy Posse to chill out, relax, blow of some steam, and get blitzed. We deserve it. Shame Chouji ain't with us tonight, then things could really get out of hand. Meh, we'll see him back in Konoha. Then we'll throw a proper party for the blonde miscreant. I better thank Master Jiraiya for that seal he gave me so that we can get both Naruto and his guest drunker than a ring-tailed polecat in a hurricane.", muttered Shika with a smile on his face as he laced his hands behind his head and strolled over to where his partners in debauchery and crime were waiting with expectant smiles on their faces.

_**"Ahhh, life is good!"**_

_And with that line, I bring to an end the second chapter of the NarutoxKoyuki fic 'Promises in Snow and Ice'._

_First off, I wanna throw a big shout out to Lovesrainscent for all of her help and pre-reading of the different sections of this story as I sent them to her to get her opinion. Thank you LRS, I owe you big time for the help and support you've given me while I was writing this chapter. I greatly appreciate it!! ___

_Next I wanna thank those who read and reviewed the first chapter. I appreciate the time and effort you took to stop and read this story and pushed me to continue. I owe you a lot as well. Thanks again. _

_I bet some of you are wondering why I titled this story what I did? Would you believe that I didn't come up with this title until I was partway through writing the first part of this chapter?! LRS and a few others had made suggestions but no matter how good they were (and some of them were DOUBLE DAMN GOOD) none of them just clicked. Then I watched the movie 'Ninja Clash in the Land of Snow' for about the fourth or fifth time (I have the three-disc special edition) and when it got to the scene where Naruto is carrying Koyuki through the railroad tunnel and makes his promise' that no matter wherever she may run, he'll find her and bring her back' (dattebayo!!) the title just came to me. I mean, come on, he makes that promise in the snow with all of the ice around them. Could anybody even write a better setting for such a romantic promise (even if the knucklehead doesn't know a thing about romance, yet.)._

_I have a feeling that part of this chapter is gonna generate some flames and I'm gonna address those right now. About Ino and Sakura being artificially inseminated with Sasuke's seed, there is a reason I wrote that. It may or may not become apparent why until much later in the story but stick with me here. As for the division among the Hyuuga, part of that will be explained next chapter. _

_Last but not least, I want to give a shout out one of my fellow members of Robotech (dot) com. Treiz, thanks for letting me use your forum catch phrase (Meh), I couldn't find anything else that would fit in there. Sorry Compadre!!_

_Next chapter_

_The Party-Boy Posse get into trouble (you expect anything less), Hinata and Neji discuss her demotion. Ino and Sakura share a mommy moment, Yukie puts her plan into action, and Tsunade gets pissed._

_  
See youse mugs next chapter!! _

_**Knightewolfe**_

_**Wolfe's Den 10/08**_


	3. Chapter 3

_**And the story continues**_

_**Promises in Snow and Ice.**_

_**Chapter 3.**_

Iruka Umino, Jonin Academy Professor at the Konohagakure Academy for Shinobi and Kunoichi, lifted his head from the stack of exams on his desk and looked out the window of his office. The everyday happenings of Konoha soothed his mind and he smiled as those who had the Will of Fire, whether shinobi or civilian, went about their everyday lives. Gazing up at the mountain where the faces of the five Fire Shadows who had lead and were now leading the village were carved, Iruka spotted a brilliant flash of golden light that surpassed the brightness of the sun and recognized it as coming from his one time favorite student as he made his way to the place he went to think.

Settling back in his seat, Iruka closed his eyes and let his senses fan out. Since it was nearing lunchtime, he could detect the chakra of his fellow shinobi as they gathered in the cafeteria. Putting names and faces to each disparate chakra flow, Iruka could, with a more than ninety percent success rate, figure out everyone who was in the cafeteria, approaching the cafeteria, or leaving the cafeteria. Iruka could even tell which of his fellow jonin were in the special ANBU Black Ops. Annex to the cafeteria.

Here were his fellow recently promoted Jonin Izumo and Kotetsu shooting the shit at a table by the coffee and tea station. There Ebisu, Jonin Sensei for the Genin team of Konohamaru, Udon, and Moegi sat quietly reading the paper. Across from him were Kurenai Yuuhi, Yugao, and Hana Inuzuka conversing over chocolate and nut brownies. In a seat next to the red-eyed Genjutsu Mistress, Iruka could sense the developing chakra reserves of her four year old son as he quietly listened to the conversation between his mother and her friends. Over near the sliding glass door leading to the balcony, Iruka could sense Maito Gai and his student Rock Lee as they lightly worked out after eating all the while proclaiming about the 'Spirit of Youth'.

Opening his senses further, Iruka could sense the Hokage's assistant happily diddy bopping and bouncing down the hallway towards the cafeteria. The academy instructor could almost sense the happiness oozing off the woman as she went about her business. There was even a subtle sense of sensuality mingling with her happiness along with something else.

_**"Wait a minute! I've felt that emotion coming from Shizune before. It's lust. Granted, last time I felt it, she was directing it my way. Kinda like Kurenai, Yugao, and Hana do now when they think I don't feel it. The Hokage's assistant is lusting after somebody in the cafeteria but who is it?",**__ wondered Iruka as he leaned forward in his chair and tried to focus his Kekkai Genkai on the happy woman now entering the cafeteria._

Once again thanking his family for his special ability, Iruka sighed and went back to looking out his office window. He pondered the trait that allowed members of the Umino Family (not Umino Clan; never Umino Clan. There were too many family clans in the Village Hidden in the Leaves already. Like one of his distant cousins who also taught at the academy, Iruka felt that Konoha had more than enough clans to need one more) to detect the chakra reserves of other shinobi at levels far surpassing what Jonin-and even the Sannin-could dream about. This trait helped him immensely when he was teaching mischievous academy students. It was a well-known fact that Iruka had never fallen victim to any of his students' pranks. Often times, Iruka's students were awed when he would dodge whatever a student tossed at him with his back turned.

Even though his parents had died in the Kyuubi attack nineteen years ago, there were still a few Uminos'-and their related families-in Konoha. Though Iruka wasn't close to any of his cousins, aunts, uncles, and paternal and maternal grandparents, he still kept up appearances and showed up at family gatherings to represent his branch of the family. In fact the last Umino Family Gathering had been two days ago and the elder family members had again expressed their displeasure at his continued bachelorhood. Although some of his female cousins had chuckled when it was revealed that he had recently been designated as one of 'Konoha's Most Eligible Bachelors, Over the Age of Thirty' according to one of the civilian fashion magazines written and printed in Konoha (hell, he was in the top five of that list).

"Damn Cousin Sayoko for absentmindedly mentioning that Kurenai, Yugao, and Hana were chasing after me as a possible love match. And curse my grandparents for ordering me to look into such a match.", growled Iruka as he thought about his cousin Umino Sayoko and her long, two-tone green-blue hair taunting him at the meal after the meeting.

Iruka knew that if his twenty-six year old cousin (a Chunin and protégé of Anko Hatake) wasn't presently away from the village on a mission with her team, he would surely challenge her to a spar so he could force her to mind her own damn business when it came to the personal life of her thirty-something year old Jonin cousin. Growling to himself again as he gazed at the stack of yet to be graded papers on his desk, Iruka Umino, Jonin Academy Instructor and, according to Lady Tsunade, the shinobi on the longest running and deadliest S-ranked mission in existence to teach the new academy students about shinobi life, threw himself back into the job he loved.

_**&&&**_

Master Jiraiya glanced up from his position at his writing table to check on his sleeping wife. Tsunade was happily snoring away from her position in the bed where he'd lain her down after unceremoniously picking her up and whisking her away from a council meeting with their late Sensei's teammates and taking her home before putting her to sleep with a powerful sleep jutsu (much to the annoyance of Homura-Sensei and Koharu-Sensei).

Jiraiya was going over some of the reports from his vast intelligence network about the goings on of various persons of interest to Konoha and their allies while writing the introduction to his new Icha Icha book. The one-armed Toad Sage was also writing in a couple of journal scrolls as he sat pondering new scenes. One scroll was filled with different jutsus and their uses. The other was a diary of some sort. Chuckling to himself, Jiraiya rolled the scroll of family jutsus up for later use when he would transcribe the different jutsus Tsunade used for the life or lives growing within his wife. Next he closed the scroll where his thoughts and dreams were and sealed it with an above Kage-rank privacy seal so that his nosy wife wouldn't find out about his thoughts. Tsunade had done the same with her diary and Jiraiya had yet to find a way to get around her own seals. The accursed woman had used a seal the seal master side of him had recognized as being both a Tsunade original medical jutsu as well as a difficult (almost forbidden) variation of another high-level medical jutsu.

Forming a familiar hand-sign, Jiraiya summoned two of his clones to replace the scrolls where they belonged and leaned his head back against his remaining arm and watched his sleeping wife with a soft gaze. He was about to get up and join her in bed after yawning when one of his contracted toad summons appeared with another scroll tied to his back. Jiraiya's eyes narrowed as he recognized the scroll color as one he'd assigned to information about a certain foreign shinobi he and his student had met on their initial training trip many years ago.

"Hey Gamasukeichi, did your father send you?", asked The Toad Sannin in a low voice as he leaned forward to retrieve the scroll.

"Yes Master Jiraiya. His Most Imperial Cool-Dude Toadness, Lord Gamabunta, sent you this scroll about the subject in question. Lord Gamabunta somehow got in touch with the heads of both the Demon Artic Fox and Demon Desert Fox Clans and requested this information. Both Clans sent the information but with the stipulation that it not be revealed to the container of the Head of the Demon Red Fox Clan. There is still some hostility between the three clans that Lady Tsunade's Head summons, Lady Katsuu is mediating. Lord Gamabunta and his counterpart of the Snake Summon Branch Clan are both worried as it seems the mediation is not going well.", replied the tri-colored toad with a shake of his head.

Jiraiya grunted and crossed his arm pensively over his chest after tossing the summons several pieces of butterscotch candy. The medium sized toad croaked in happiness as he used his webbed feet to unwrap several pieces of the butterscotch goodness and insert them into his mouth. Unrolling the scroll and starting to read, Jiraiya thanked the toad and patted him on his head absently. Seeing that his master was occupied with his reading, Gamasukeichi finished his treats and dispelled himself. He had to report back to his father, That Most Awesome Toad Dude Lord Gamabunta, the results of his errand. And he had to rub the fact that he got some candy into the faces of his brothers Gamakchi and Gamatatsu.

Besides there was a sporting event in the world of summons that pitted Lady Katsuu's Slugs against a clan of those damnable Owl Summons that promised to be interesting.

_**&&&**_

Naruto Uzumaki sat in his usual spot on the head of the Yondaime Hokage and pondered what he should be doing. He couldn't go hang out with Shikamaru for a bit. Lady Yoshino had temporarily banned the other three members of Konoha's Party Boy Posse from the Nara Compound after they had brought her son home from another bash thrown in honor of Naruto's return soooo drunk, Shikamaru had fallen down in her nice clean living room and passed out next to his father, who'd just returned from a night out with his friends Chouza Akimichi and Inoichi Yamanaka that had ended up with them at their favorite watering hole. The Yamanaka Clan Head had regaled his two friends with stories of his dirty-blonde haired grandson, Inoiki Yamanaka. Ino had left her son in the caring hands of his grandparents while the newly demoted to Genin Kunoichi had left on her mission with Lady Hatake.

Lady Nara had chased the trio of her sons' friends and fellow Jonin out of _**HER**_ house with a flurry of senbon needles, shuriken, and kunai. Thus demonstrating once again that, even though she was on inactive duty; Yoshino Nara was still a kunoichi to be feared by everyone when she was pissed off. In fact, it was widely known around Konoha that the Matriarch of the Nara Clan was the only person to ever intimidate the original wild kunoichi Anko Mitarashi. Naruto laughed to himself as he remembered the small woman chasing both Kakashi and Jiraiya out of her well cared for house after the pair had brought Shikaku back from the pub where all of the male shinobi had celebrated Kakashi's bachelor party a bit too lively. Naruto had created a clone and had the clone henge into his Oiroke form of Naruko and drop in on Anko's bachelorette party where she found out that every so often Lady Yoshino liked to get as trashed as her husband when out with her friends. She was just better at recovering from a hangover than her husband (Naruto also found out that Lady Yoshino was a fellow Jonin and extremely effective in discovering and dispelling a snooping and henged Kage Bunshin at a 'Kunoichi's Only' party before it got _too_ wild and revealing).

Glancing down from his location, Naruto saw the village he hoped to lead one day as a Hokage like his father, Namikaze Minato; the Yondaime Hokage, before him. Naruto also saw that by his side and being his gentler yet fierce side, like his mother Uzumaki Kushina was for his father, a woman he loved and cared for. Sensing several sets of feminine footsteps and a few feminine chakra reserves, Naruto grumbled to himself and launched his seated form off the mountain as a gang of shinobi and civilian females tried to pounce on their prey and get him in a compromising position.

"Oh great, fangirls! Now I know how both Neji and the bastard felt back in our academy days. Sheesh, will I ever escape them. It's like they think I don't know what they want. Mainly me! Although a few of them want to have my children. I would bet that somewhere in Konoha there's a secret magazine circulating among the unmarried women of child bearing age that documents my every move. At least Tsunade-baachan and Shizune-nee-chan are the only ones allowed to perform my medical check-ups and complete physicals. Especially after it was revealed that there was ring of nurses in the hospital running a secret sperm bank out of the hospital stocked with samples of my DNA. I'm glad that baachan was able to recover every sample either stolen or sold from the operation as well as quietly request that the kunoichi that had had herself artificially inseminated to allow Lady Hokage to end her pregnancy. Although I did have to promise to allow her to bear one of my children after I'm married and have an heir on the way. Dammit, I even had to allow her to adopt either the Namikaze or Uzumaki last names when I make the decision about which one I'm going to use when I'm Hokage.", muttered Naruto as he hurtled through the air towards the village he so loved.

After freefalling several hundred feet, Naruto used his elemental affinity to slow his body down and allow him to rotate so that he touched the ground feet first. Taking a minute to get his bearings, Naruto turned in the direction of his favorite restaurant. Six bowls of the delectable yummy-ness known as ramen would help him put things in perspective. He took several steps in the direction of Ichiraku Ramen when an unbelievable force collided with him and knocked him on his ass.

"Owwww damnit, shit. What the fuck!", exclaimed Naruto as he angrily looked over at who knocked him down.

Seeing the trademark bluenette hair that signified a woman of the Hyuuga Clan, Naruto sighed in resignation. He recognized the short hairstyle as that of one of his Genin Team. Naruto knew that Hinata, recently demoted, much to his surprise, was presently out of the village on a mission and that there were a few more of the distinctive Hyuuga women now moving around the village reveling in the new freedom given them by the head of the clan. The Jonin also knew that of those women (both branch family and main family) there was only one who would be out running during lunch.

"Yes Hanabi, what is it?"

"Naruto Sensei?!? Oh god, I ran into you? I'm sorry sensei, I'm so sorry!", stuttered the fourteen year old genin as she jumped to her feet.

Naruto sighed to himself as he rose while listening to the second Hyuuga Heir as she babbled her apologies. Ever since a sparring match between the two sisters had turned into an all out war, the previously quiet Hanabi had become extremely loquacious. Naruto knew that he'd better stop her before she rambled on and raised his left hand to halt her speech while holding his throbbing head with his right. At least Hanabi still spoke in the formal and semi-formal styles required by Hyuuga Main Family members away from the expansive compound (Hyuuga Branch Family members were allowed a bit more leeway in their speech. Some had even started speaking like their matriarch TenTen Hyuuga).

Asking his student to tell the story over a bowl of ramen (that for some odd reason Hanabi had fallen in love with), Naruto led the genin to Ichiraku's. When he arrived, he wasn't surprised to see the other two members of his Genin team sitting at the counter waiting for him. Seeing the familiar eyes and hearing the familiar speech of one of Hanabi's cousins, Naruto sighed again. Everyday he wondered how he, of all the Jonin Sensei's, had had the misfortune to have two members of the famed family (and another of those distinctive bluenette females) as his students. Glancing at the forehead of Chitose Hyuuga, Naruto was relieved to see that the member of the Hyuuga Branch Family didn't have the same seal as her clan head denoting her place in the branch family.

Naruto remembered the uprising in the Hyuuga Clan when Lady Hinata had finally lost her temper with her father Hiashi Hyuuga and challenged him to a duel for leadership of the Hyuuga. Hinata had won, much to the amazement of every member of the clan as well as the village in general except for Naruto and Neji, and had ascended to the position of Hyuuga Clan Head in a ceremony in front of the entire village. After the ceremony that day, Hiashi had taken Naruto aside while still recovering from the wounds inflicted by his eldest daughter (he'd ended up on Tsunade's shit list for leaving his hospital bed in order to preside over the ceremony and pass over the robes and scrolls signifying his former position over to the new head of the clan) and expressed his pride at Hinata's ascendance to the position she was born to. Of course being the sly Hyuuga that he was, Hiashi had betrothed Hinata to Naruto as his last act as Clan Head.

Naruto was surprised, Tsunade was miffed, Neji (the other bastard) had laughed, Hanabi, Sakura, and Ino had frowned at the action. A few members of the Hyuuga Clan Council had smirked, others had growled their displeasure, and still others hadn't worried about it. For her part, the new clan head wasn't happy. In fact, Hinata was extremely livid and had quietly and gently requested the members of her council and her father to join her in the council room of the Hyuuga Clan and had ordered Neji and some of the branch family members to keep everyone else out.

Ultimately, several members of the Hyuuga Clan Council had ended up in the Intensive Care Unit (often called the stupidity ward) of Konoha's General Hospital with serious Jyuuken-caused damage to their chakra systems. Hiashi ended up booking himself into the hospital for several more weeks to recover from the new damage he'd incurred. He didn't have to worry much though, during his extended stint under Shizune's care, a few more members of the Hyuuga council joined him.

Naruto ceased his reminiscing and brought his attention back to his team as Hanabi and Chitose started bickering over some little thing or another. The lone male of the team, Iketani Junichi, observed his two female teammates with an undisguised glee as it became apparent that the escalating argument between them was gonna lead to a catfight. He couldn't wait for that to happen because he could write about it and send it in as an entry for a writing contest sponsored by Master Jiraiya's publisher.

"Junichi is a pervert in training. He's gonna learn the hard way that it doesn't pay to stick his nose into a girl's fight without reaping the consequences. Whoops, there he goes! As many times as I've told him not to antagonize his teammates, you would think he would've learned by now. I'm glad that I hadn't decided to teach them Ero-sennin's 'Invisibility Jutsu'. I'd have every Hyuuga female as well as the old hag after me.", mused Naruto as he watched the fourteen year old boy go flying out of the restaurant with the help of two Hyuuga Kaitens'.

The nineteen year old blonde watched as his red-headed student collided painfully with a tree eighty yards up the road and crashed to the ground. Naruto winced in commiseration as Junichi's head lolled around. Turning to his two female students, Naruto frowned as he watched the two glare daggers at each other. Deciding to have them work off their adrenalin rush and train at the same time, Naruto cleared his throat and told the two Hyuuga to retrieve their teammate (who was now attempting to groggily rise to his feet) and report to Training Ground Eight.

"And no fighting between the three of you on the way there; you don't want me to do the same thing I did last time the three of you got to fighting? I know for a fact that both Gai Sensei and Lee Sensei would love to have you join them for early morning Taijutsu Training tomorrow.", stated Naruto off-handedly as he ignored the looks of fear on the faces of the two Hyuuga women.

"Yes, Naruto-Sensei, we understand. No more fighting among us.", chirruped Chitose and Hanabi with barely concealed fear in their voices as they remembered the last time Gai and Lee had tortur-err trained them.

Hearing the remorse and worry in their voices but feigning that he didn't, Naruto bit his thumb and calmly called out:

"Kuchiyose no Jutsu!"

A puff of smoke appeared and when it had dissipated, there sat an orange and blue toad.

"Whatcha want boss?", asked Gamakichi excitedly.

"Oi Kichi, my genin are fighting again. Think you can find Gai-Sensei or Lee-Sensei and inform them that it's possible that my team might be joining them for early morning 'Youthfulness' training tomorrow?", asked Naruto as he idly cleaned his fingernails with a handy kunai.

"Sure boss. Gimme some candy and I will!"

Naruto laughed at his toad friend as he heard the paired exclamations of the Hyuuga Kunoichi as their imaginations filled them with images of the two Beautiful Green Beasts of Konoha keeping up a numbing monologue about their youthful spirits as they did five hundred laps around the village on their hands and having to deal with a bunch of their sensei's Kage Bunshins following them and shouting encouragement. Last time they'd angered Naruto-sensei to this point, he'd sent them for training with both Gai and Lee and had made them wear copies of those gawd-awful horrible green jumpsuits while doing so, much to their great embarrassment. It had taken them months (and a couple of beat downs on their fellow genins. Konohamaru Sarutobi and his teammates still occasionally walked with a limp when they were tired) to live that mortifying moment of infamy down.

"Hey Naruto, I know that you are one of our favorite customers and you always bring us business, but why do you torment your students that way?", asked Ayame Ichiraku as she set another bowl of pork ramen in front of Naruto.

"Ayame nee-san, it's not torment if they learn how to get along as a team. Their final genin exam was a mess. They barely passed the bell test. Even when Team Seven underwent the same test back, we did slightly better than my Team Nineteen. It doesn't help that Iketani is discovering girls and has a crush on Chitose, while Chitose is trying to prove to Hanabi that even though she came late to training, she's every bit the developing kunoichi as Hanabi is. Chitose also has a burgeoning crush on Junichi while Hanabi is learning to express emotions other than the famed Hyuuga stoicism and indifference. I've used the invisibility jutsu Ero-sennin taught me to observe them when they think I'm not around. So far the latent expert teamwork is there, underneath their present dodgy teamwork but they haven't discovered it yet. It's frustrating to see them this way. Now I know how Kakashi felt each time Sakura, the teme, and I got into it. By the time Sasuke left the village and turned traitor, the Teamwork of Team Seven had improved to the point where when we were out on low C-level missions during that time, some enemy shinobi were afraid to face us because they couldn't predict how we would react.", answered Naruto as he finished his ramen and got up from his seat.

Turning towards the curtain that marked the exit, Naruto paid for his meal and the meals of his team before waving goodbye to some of the first people who acknowledged him when he was younger and fed him when he had no money as a child scorned and hated by the village unable to feed himself. Naruto glanced back at Ayame and her father Teuchi, saw how old he was in the lines of his face and hoped that when he did marry and have children, he could introduce them to his adopted godfather and godsister and their wondrous world of ramen.

Whistling a happy tune, Naruto ambled off in the direction of the disappearing dust cloud that signified his students and philosophized about what he was going to teach them today. Deciding to ask Kakashi to pass on a message to Anko when she returned, Naruto smiled at the bright blue sky and golden sun warming his skin before using a shunshin to arrive at that specified training ground to wait for his team to arrive.

_**&&&**_

Temporary Genin Hinata Hyuuga growled to herself as she tried to clean the last of the spilled blood from her latest assassination victim out of the white silk kimono that had given her the nickname: 'Konoha's Ivory Widowmaker'. It had been a rough assignment for the six of them and it wasn't over yet. Team Six-Six had been assigned a mission involving a series of several assassinations of Chunin and Jonin level missing-nins. Unfortunately, it seemed that there were several assassin teams from the different Hidden Villages also after the targets and the disparate teams were bumbling and stumbling over each other and occasionally attacking long-time enemies and allies.

Luckily, her present team leader had been in the area before and knew every little hole-in-the-wall bar and unscrupulous club where the targets would congregate and bandy around lies about their prowess as they drank themselves into a stupor. Anko was well known in some of the establishments and entered them all the time. A few times the team had entered a bar and walked into a vicious barroom brawl. But all it took for the fighters to calm down and start spilling information on the designated targets was somebody noticing the arrival of Konoha's Smiling Mistress of Death and her infamous grin. When that happened and Anko made her interests known, an extremely long line of willing informants appeared at their table within seconds of their sitting down. The only payment Anko promised the men and women was that she would allow them to live.

Holding her kimono up to the light, Hinata sighed and figured that she'd done the best she could and washed the majority of blood out of the shining silk and walked across the room she was sharing with TenTen, Sakura, and Ino to hang the garment up where it could dry. Glancing at the clock (while absentmindedly noticing the….interesting pattern of blood splotches on the silk), Hinata saw that dinner time was nearing and she had enough time to dash off a quick letter to her beloved Naruto-kun before meeting the others down in the hotel restaurant and lounge.

"I bet the blonde and pink haired hussies are already down there getting their drink on while plotting to take my baby away from me. Those bitches!!", snarled Hinata as she snatched her writing utensils off of the night stand next to the bed she was sharing with TenTen and stormed over to the desk in the room.

(Hinata absolutely refused to share a bed with either Sakura or Ino. Her reasoning being that she might 'accidentally' kill either of them in their sleep. The wenches in question had rolled their eyes in a 'yeah right' movement while Anko had yelled at them to figure out the sleeping arrangements on their own.)

Dropping into the chair and placing her stationary on the table, Hinata propped her bare feet up on the little footstool and inspected the pink polish on her toenails critically before deciding to avail herself of a pedicure and a day of pampering in the hotels' resort day spa tomorrow while Ino and Sakura carried out their assignments and took out their designated targets.

"Maybe I'll ask Cousin TenTen to join me in the spa. It would be a good thing to just hang out with her tomorrow doing girly stuff and relaxing. I could also ask her about her and Neji's…..activities before we left to meet the others at the village gates. Those rope burns on her arms looked pretty bad. Come to think of it, Anko-sensei had similar marks on her arms and legs when she showed up. Well I have to request that she and Neji keep their voices down when they're….enjoying each others company. Last time they went at it, I had the damn Clan Council representative banging on the door to my private rooms at four in the fucking morning asking me, nicely for once, to go quiet those two down. Ruined the dream I was having about my Naruto-kun for the rest of the night, Dammit! I hope Hanabi and Chitose are taking care of the poor guy during his recovery.", mused Hinata as she placed the tip of her pen against the corner of her mouth and thought about what to write in her letter.

Several minutes later, TenTen Hyuuga entered the room and spotted her cousin leaning back in her seat with a dreamy grin on her face and some blood dripping from her nostril. TenTen shook her head in exasperation and went about divesting herself of her clothes so they could be washed. Slipping into a simple robe and retrieving her bathing supplies, a curious TenTen looked over her cousin's shoulder and started reading what Hinata had written so far. It didn't take long for TenTen's own nose to start bleeding from the extremely imaginative and descriptive actions Hinata was writing her beloved about.

"Woah, damn! My virgin cousin Hinata has a really freaky perverted side when it comes to the blonde idi…_HOLY SHIT THAT'S DESCRIPTIVE_!!", shouted TenTen as she backed away from her cousin the ecchi.

Taking a hold of Hinata's shoulder and giving it a shake, TenTen made a decision to help her cousin get her beloved and get laid when they returned to Konoha. A dazed Hinata came out of her erotic stupor and TenTen passed her a whole box of tissue paper.

"Hunwha… oh TenTen, I didn't know you'd returned to the room.", slurred Hinata as she confusedly accepted the box.

"Hinata. Cold Shower. Now!", stated TenTen in a staccato voice.

Hinata looked up at her cousin and wondered why TenTen had a piece of tissue rolled up and stuffed into each nostril. That was until she noticed the slow leak of crimson coming from TenTen's nose. Realization hit and the Hyuuga Main Family Head gasped in shock and whipped her head around to the sheets of parchment on the desk. It only took one glance at her indelible words and Hinata knew that her cousin had read her supposedly private letter. Oddly, Hinata wasn't ashamed, embarrassed, or even angry. She knew that TenTen wouldn't tell anyone of the fantasies Hinata only wrote down in letters to Naruto.

Sighing to herself and asking her cousin if she would assist her in her private quest, Hinata was happy to see TenTen's nod of approval and grinned at her new partner in crime to steal the heart of Konoha's Golden Whirlwind and get him into her boudoir where she could practice all of her fantasies with him. Even though Hinata had thrashed the Clan Council (and her father) after she'd found out about his last act as Clan Head, it was more out of embarrassment and proving to the old fogies that she could be as hard as a diamond-tipped kunai of titanium alloy when the situation warranted it, Hinata had been ecstatic on the inside and immediately started making mental plans for a wedding that Konoha wouldn't forget. Unfortunately, before her plans could go into effect, a new protest group sprung up out of nowhere and raised such a ruckus about the impending nuptials that Hinata had conversed with Lady Tsunade and a few others and had, for the sake of the village, reluctantly agreed to put those plans on the back burner for now.

As Hinata thought back on that incident while retrieving her toiletries and heading off to join TenTen in the bath, she realized that the Twin Harlots had to have been the ones behind the organization of the 'Women Against Naruto Marrying Hinata', movement and wasn't surprised. It would've been par for the course for Ino and Sakura to block the wedding.

"Hehehe, those two can do what they want. In the end, I'm the only one Lady Tsunade slipped the key to Naruto's apartment to with the map to get around all of the hidden traps he has laid in his place of residence. Now if only my little blonde-haired stud-muffin had been home the other night. I wouldn't be in my present situation and if things had gone my way, in nine months there would've been a blonde addition to the Hyuuga Clan. Damn Ino! Damn Sakura!", grunted Hinata as she forcibly slammed the door to the hotel room shut and stalked out towards the open air bath house.

Downstairs in the restaurant and lounge Sakura and Ino both sneezed as they ate dinner. Across from the two, Temari lifted her eyebrows in exclamation and sipped her drink calmly while their team captain slugged down another shot of a new alcoholic beverage she'd taken an instant liking to. The drink, called bourbon, was imported from lands far across the sea and seemed (to Anko at least) to go down real smooth. Temari had been convinced by Anko soon after they got into town to try some and had been intrigued by the smoky smooth taste until she staggered off to bed late that night and realized that this bourbon had a potent kick if one indulged in too much. The taste numbed one's senses enough to impair their judgment about how much one has actually drank and made them think that they hadn't had as much as they had actually had.

Come morning, Temari's head had pounded like a kettle drum and she suffered a temporary bout of vertigo. The twenty-one year old Suna Kunoichi had somehow made it to the bath that morning to recover from her intoxication and had reveled as the warm scented water had cleared her sinuses and cleaned the fogginess out of her mind. Of course it had been quite amusing when her four teammates had staggered in and joined her in the bath for the relief it promised. Everything had been fine until the silence of the bath had been disturbed by the arrival of a severely hung over Anko. Temari and her four teammates learned that a hung-over Anko + a warm bath = a whole lotta naughty fun that left everyone breathless and completely relaxed.

Bowing her head over her plate of food, Temari hid the blush that was threatening to break out over her face. However, Ino and Sakura spotted the developing flush. The fiancée of Shikamaru Nara knew that she was in for a merciless session of torture as the pair tried to dig out what was making Temari blush like so. Resigning herself to the inevitable, Temari waited for Ino to use her family jutsu to delve into her private thoughts. When nothing happened, Temari was curious. Her curiosity was assuaged when she heard the familiar voice of Ino and Sakura's eternal rival.

"_Ino!!! I knew that you just couldn't control yourself and gave in to the urges to go traipsing through somebody's mind!_ _ Dammit, can't you keep your mind to yourself just once!!!!", _Temari heard Hinata growl as she approached their table with TenTen.

"_Oh stifle it, little miss perfect virgin! This doesn't concern you! I was just trying to find out why Temari was blushing and tease her about it! What's it to you, slut?",_ screeched Ino as she glared at her number two rival for the love of one Naruto Uzumaki.

Before Hinata could respond to that, TenTen cut into the conversation and idly informed Ino that she'd contradicted herself by referring to Hinata as virgin in one sentence and as a slut in another. Of course, TenTen being who she was couldn't resist a parting shot at Sakura and Ino as she flipped open her menu to order.

"No matter what either of you two mommies do, I bet Hinata will have Naruto-kun in her bed with a ring on his finger doing all sorts of erotic things by the time of her twentieth birthday!", chuckled TenTen.

Before either of them could comment on TenTen's words, a familiar irate voice whipcracked over the table and cut through the tension rising from the five kunoichi and everybody paled. Anko had arrived.

And she was extremely pissed!!

_**&&&**_

Several miles away from where Anko Mitarashi was chastising her team, Yukie Fujikaze was about to have a nervous breakdown. The actress had just received two messages from The Land of Spring. And neither one of them boded well for her plans.

It seems that her council wanted to be sure that their princess was truly returning to her homeland at the end of her six month tour of duty. In less than a month and a half, the council from The Land of Spring as well as her ladies-in-waiting were going to arrive in time to attend the wrap party for her latest movie. At the party upon the stroke of midnight, Yukie was ordered to revert to her birth name as Koyuki Kazahana, Princess of the Land of Spring.

"Dammit, this sucks!!", shouted Yukie as she walked through the streets of the city incognito.

Nothing could be done to keep the council from arriving and screwing up her detailed plans to get away. Even her producer and her director couldn't keep the old decrepit men and women from showing up. Somehow they knew exactly when the party was going to take place and how long it was going to last. Yukie narrowed her eyes as she realized how not only the council knew but her ladies-in-waiting knew as well. And one of those ladies-in-waiting was presently traveling with the princess as her manager.

"_**Damn that woman! Damn Misato!! She had to go and open her blasted mouth about the wrap party. Now instead of melting away into the crowd covered by Director Makino's excuses for my leaving early, I gotta stick around and deal with the asinine assholes. Shit, shit, shit, double damn fuck, shit!! I'm caught between a rock and a hard place here!", **__raged the thoughts in Yukie's mind as she sat down at a ramen stall to rest her feet and get something to eat._

An hour later, a full Yukie strolled back towards the hotel by way of a slowly meandering course. As she walked, the princess tried to figure out a way to ditch her council and court when they arrived for the cast party. Still not finding a way, Yukie took a seat on a bench next to a forested area on the outskirts of the town. Leaning back and tasking her mind to search for anything that could help her, Yukie was sidetracked by the sounds of combat coming from behind her. Reaching in to the pocket of her trench coat, the actress grasped the kunai knife secreted there. Rising to her feet and letting some of her basic shinobi training come to the fore, Yukie stepped quietly into the forest.

Following the sounds, she soon came upon an odd sight. A fourteen year-old boy wearing a tiger-striped pattern of shinobi clothing was battling two humanoid figures. It wasn't until the boy landed a kick on the figure to his right that spun him broadside to the actress that Yukie saw exactly who or what the boy was fighting. Her knife dropped soundlessly to the ground as her eyes took in the sight of a six-tailed artic fox. Yukie's gasp of surprise stopped the boy and his remaining opponent from continuing their fight and they both turned to the source of the noise. As the child's other opponent became visible, Yukie's eyes grew even wider.

Both of the boy's opponents were humanoid six-tailed foxes; one with the snowy white and light grey coat of an Artic Fox while the other had the light brown and tan fur of a Desert Fox. Before anyone could say anything, Yukie Fujikaze passed out.

"Oh great, now look what we've done you two! I told you that this was not a good place for us to train. Crap!", muttered the boy as he walked over to the prone woman and checked to see if she was alright.

Seeing that the beautifully familiar lady was okay and had just suffered a sudden loss of consciousness, the boy sat on his haunches and waited for her to wake-up. Sighing to himself in resignation, the fourteen year-old reached into his back pocket and brought out a bag of jerky to snack on as he waited for the woman to arise.

Ten minutes after her sudden voyage to dreamland, Yukie's eyes fluttered open and she groaned as a pain in her head made itself known. Trying to remember what happened, the actress lifted her torso off of the ground only to come face to face with a set of young inquisitive eyes giving her a concerned look. Clearing her throat, Yukie tried to speak only to cough as the dryness in her mouth became readily apparent.

"Here you go lady, have some water. It'll help you recover quicker.", came a young tenor.

Nodding her thanks, Yukie accepted the canteen the boy held out to her and lifted it to her mouth to swallow a few drops so her throat would be properly lubricated. The cool clean trickle of life-giving fluid went a long way to clearing her head so Yukie quietly put her thoughts together before speaking. Handing the canteen back to the child, actress watched as he recapped the canteen and replaced it in the canvas pouch on his left hip. Taking a deep breath, Yukie started to talk.

"You're a shinobi from one of the Hidden Villages aren't you?", asked the actress.

"Yes ma'am. I'm from one of the Hidden Villages. I can't tell you which one because revealing that would be the cause of my execution when my fellow shinobi found out. What I can tell you other than my name, is that I'm fourteen years old and hold the rank of Jonin in my village. Unfortunately, in a few months I have to be in Konoha to take part in that dammed Chunin exam to prove to the shinobi of Konoha and the other Hidden Villages that the shinobi of my village are not to be underestimated if they ever come against us in battle. I'm also going as a representative of the leader of my village as well as try and find one of our special ops kunoichi who we've lost contact with.", commented the boy as he stood up.

"Don't forget the other reason your sister sent you out on this quest!", chimed in one of the two-legged foxes holding up a tree nearby.

"Shut it furball!! Why don't you and your cousin return to where I called you from and leave me alone!", yelled the boy as he made a series of rapid hand-signs that caused the two foxes to disappear.

Yukie lifted an eyebrow as she saw a pair of brief flashes glow through his shirt and figured that he must have some sort of seal or seals on his body. The young boy caught the movement and sighed. Whenever he met a new person it always came down to this.

"Before you say anything, I'll explain. Do you know what a jinchuuriki is?"

Yukie rolled the term around in her mind. She half remembered it from somewhere but couldn't place where. Deciding to allow the boy to explain so she could gain his trust, Yukie signaled that she had a passing knowledge of the term with a nod. Seeing her nod, Yukie observed as the boy continued his story.

"Well to make a long story short a jinchuuriki is a human being that has sealed within him or her one of the Nine Great Tailed Demon Beasts or one of their lesser tailed cousins. Sealed within me are two Rokubi-no-Kitsune demons, lesser cousins to the strongest of all the Bijuu, the Kyuubi-no-Kitsune. Also known as the Nine-Tailed Demon Fox. Legend has it that almost twenty years ago; Kyuubi attacked Konoha only to be weakened enough by the Yondaime Hokage so he could seal him away within a new born infant. However, unlike Konohagakure no Sato, in my village the two demon foxes sealed within me when I was a baby voluntarily chose me to be their container. Through the years, I've learned how to manifest them in this world to help me fight battles or to train and make me stronger.", stated the child with his head bent low.

Yukie could hear the hurt in the young shinobi's voice and it tugged at her heartstrings. Here she was bitching because her plans for a successful escape were on the verge of being ruined and this young boy; no young man traveling around the Five Great Nations by himself going from town to town, village to village making a few friends but having to hide his curse (or blessing however you want to look at it) from those he makes friends with. Suddenly an idea popped in Yukie's head and she asked how well his control over his two guests was.

"Oh, it's pretty good. Once I manifest them, I rarely ever have to worry about them causing problems. The Desert Fox is usually the troublemaker but his impulsiveness is countered by the patience of the Arctic Fox.", replied the child with a hopeful glint in his light hazel eyes.

Yukie laughed at the eagerness of the young shinobi and asked him if he could help her out of her present predicament. She offered to pay him a suitable amount of money and pass on to him any information regarding the kunoichi he was searching for. All he had to do was be at her hotel and she would get him into the party.

"There's one last thing I want you to do. However, it's for when you get to Konoha.", asked Yukie as she leaned forward.

"Sure, what is it?"

"I need you to deliver a scroll to a shinobi of Konoha named Naruto Uzumaki. At the Chunin Exam, he'll either be one of the test proctors or his team of genin will be entered in the exam. Look for a jonin with blonde hair, blue eyes, and six whiskers-like birthmarks on his face; three on each cheek. If you can't find him, just ask around. Somebody will either point him out to you or they'll tell him that you're looking for him and he'll find you."

The boy cocked his head and gave her a questioning look. He was kind of curious at why this nice lady wanted him to deliver a message scroll to this Uzumaki. What was he to her? Yukie saw the look and blushed before mumbling out an answer. When he asked for her to repeat it she just told him that he'd understand when he got older. The boy sighed and allowed the topic of the non-verbal discussion to drop (much to Yukie's relief). Hearing the growl of the boy's stomach that indicated it was displeased at being empty; Yukie told the young shinobi that she'd take him to get something to eat. While he was eating, Yukie would write the message she wanted delivered and got the boy to promise that he wouldn't hand it over to anybody but the person in question. He agreed as he ate at a rapid pace. Yukie smiled as she watched the youngster before turning her attention to the blank scroll resting on the table in front of her. Pursing her lips for a minute, Yukie thought about what she was going to write. When the words came, the actress uncapped her autograph pen and started writing.

"_In the sunlit cavern of snow and ice, _

_The snowshoe hare awaits her beloved_

_With his crimson-gold fur ablaze in the sensuous_

_Moonlight, the hare dreams of the time_

_when two will become_

_One."_

Finishing her short little missive, Yukie wonders if Naruto will understand the message. She hoped in her heart of hearts that he will. Signing the message with a flourish and, as an added incentive, Yukie kissed the sheet of parchment reverently and rolled it up as tight as it would go. Reaching into the inner pocket of her trench coat, Yukie pulled out a signet ring engraved with the custom design she'd created just for sealing message scrolls written specifically for Naruto. The princess giggled in delight as she realized that this was the first time she was actually going to use the seal for its intended purpose.

Requesting a small container of melted wax from the waitress, Yukie slipped the ring on her finger and dipped the engraving into the hot wax and waited a second for the concoction to adhere. Lifting the dripping ring out of the wax, Yukie applied it to the rolled up scroll, thus sealing the private message within and keeping the scroll from unraveling from rough handling. Wishing she knew enough to create a sealing jutsu to further secure her message, Yukie handed the scroll over to the young boy with a deep breath. She hoped and prayed that her message would get to Konoha and the very special ninja that resided there.

_**&&&**_

Lady Tsunade was not in a good mood. Standing at attention in front of her were the four members of Konoha's Party Boy Posse. Sitting on her desk were two complaint reports that indicated that on two different occasions at least three members of the notorious group instigated activities detrimental to the health and safety of others. Reading between the lines, Tsunade knew that what the reports were saying is that one of the four Jonin in front of her had started a fight.

"Alright you four, start talking. Shikamaru, Kiba, and Naruto first off I want to know how a simple mission to retrieve Naruto from his train somehow ended up with the three of you practically destroying a neutral shinobi bar. Then I want to address this second report where the owner of a popular club here in the village had to call the Konoha Police Force to keep you from making a developing incident worse than it already was. To top it off, I have Lady Nara demanding that I drop kick the lot of you into the stockade for a few weeks so that all of this youthfulness crap can be safely expended. Right now I am seriously tempted to follow her suggestion and just lock the four of you up; however, I'm going to punish the four of you in a different way. For the next two months half of all your pay will be 'donated' to the cost of repairing both bars.", growled the Hokage as she stared at her troublemaker quartet.

There stood Naruto, his ever-present sheepish grin on his face while trying to look innocent. Next to him stood Chouji Akimichi, one of her strongest shinobi and always eating from his bag of chips. On Naruto's other side stood Konoha's Lazy Genius Shikamaru Nara, the look on his face telling Tsunade that he was still feeling the effects of the party two days ago, and last but not least, The Wildman of Konoha, Kiba Inuzuka; a smirk painting his features. It didn't take a brainiac to guess that Kiba was the instigator of the separate events. The Hokage continued her discourse on the punishments she was dishing out.

"Furthermore, I'm also sentencing the four of you to other duties. First off, Shikamaru it has come to my attention that Sunagakure no Sato has a vacancy in their strategy corps. You are to travel to Suna and fill that vacancy until Lord Kazekage promotes somebody to that position. You leave tonight. Upon arrival in Suna, you'll report to Kankuro no Sabaku. He's waiting for you and I believe that the two of you will have a lot to talk about.", Tsunade stated calmly while trying not to react to the dark look of terror that spread across Shikamaru's face.

_**"I got him over a barrel and really shafted his plans for when Temari returns from her punishment mission as a part of Anko's team. Shika, you're smart but don't you think you should have waited to request that day and the next three days afterwards off. Alright on to my next victim.", **__thought Tsunade as she watched her genius of strategy leave her office after she dismissed him and turned her attention to the remaining members of the Konoha's most notorious group of wandering lotharios._

Next up was Kiba and Tsunade quickly sentenced him to three weeks on the wedding present from his wife and not complaining about it. Kiba had wanted to protest (loudly) but Shizune opened the office door and the irate voice of Kiba's wife Aisha ricocheted off the walls and into the unprepared eardrums of the three nogoodniks standing in front of Tsunade. The Hokage had to smother a grin when one of Aisha's attack dogs came bounding into the office and clamped his mouth on an intimate part of Kiba's anatomy and waited until his mistress stepped into the office, and with apologies to Tsunade, led her husband out of her office by his ear. Kiba tried to get Tsunade to go easy but it wasn't possible to do much with his wife's hand on his leather jacket and one of their ninja attack dogs (loyal to Aisha only) trailing behind, nipping at Kiba's heels if he showed even the slightest sign of slowing down.

Chouji was tasked with joining a team of ANBU Black Ops on a month long survival training mission in the Forest of Death with what he had on his person at that moment. Ironically, the training mission he'd just been assigned was the very one Anko had been tasked to oversee three days previous until she found her team of temporary genin desecrating her responsibility.

Finally, Tsunade sat observing her possible successor as Konoha's next Fire Shadow, as he fidgeted uncomfortably in place while awaiting judgment. Tsunade knew that whatever she sentenced him to; Naruto would perform his punishment to the highest level. The hyperactive jonin would bitch and moan but he would do it as long as required of him. Offering up a wry smile, Tsunade knew her adopted brother would do anything to keep his dream alive and advance up the next wrung of seniority till he ultimately sat in her spot as the Sixth Fire Shadow of Konoha. Tsunade also knew that when she decided to finally step down and retire to raise her family, if the Legacy of the Fourth Fire Shadow was selected as her replacement, Naruto would lead Konoha and all of those who have the 'Will of Fire' into a new golden age of peace. A peace that would last long after Naruto was gone.

_**"If he does become Hokage, I have a feeling that his tenure as Hokage will last far longer than the tenures of all those Hokage's who came before him, even mine. Sarutobi Sensei, Jiraiya my beloved, Kakashi the three of you were right in your own ways. Within Naruto Namikaze-Uzumaki, The Will of Fire Burns White Hot! It burns so hot that it is an eternal flame that will never die! Nawaki, my brother, Dan my first love; here in front of me is the manifestation of your dreams. I know that as long as Naruto follows his nindo, the sacrifices the two of you made will not be in vain!",**__ thought Tsunade as she reached for a tissue to dab at the wetness that was gathering the corners of her aging eyes. _

Eyes widening at a sudden revelation, Tsunade hurriedly jotted down a note and passed it to her assistant. Shizune glanced down at the note and did a double take. Lifting a questioning eyebrow at her mistress, the medical kunoichi asked Tsunade for confirmation of the written request.

"Only if that comes to pass, Shizune.", answered Tsunade out of the corner of her mouth.

"Yes milady. I understand.", Shizune replied noncommittally.

Naruto wondered what had just transpired between his Tsunade-baasan and Shizune-neesan. He brushed the thought away for now as he prepared for whatever the Hokage was going to set as his punishment for his actions. Naruto hoped that he wasn't going to be demoted like Hinata, Sakura, and Ino. He'd worked too damn hard to reach his present position and he'd be damned if he was gonna be forced to give it up no matter how temporary it was. Naruto felt that he'd even go as far as to become a missing-nin to keep his rank. Tsunade saw the fiery glint of determination in those bright blue eyes that every woman in Konoha wanted to fall into and sighed in resignation. She hadn't planned on demoting him for his minor transgressions (she knew the battle she'd have on her hands if she did. And with her pregnancy in its final month and a half, Tsunade knew that she wouldn't be able to beat him without dying herself and causing the life within her womb to cease as well).

Naruto had truly become the most powerful shinobi in all of the Five Nations. In the numerous shinobi bingo books, The Golden Whirlwind surpassed his father The Yellow Flash in ranking. Naruto was the first and only shinobi in the world to have a rank that the bingo book authors could not categorize. The synopsis beside his entry in the bingo book had only one sentence: _'Avoid At All Costs!!!'_

There was only one thing that kept Naruto from having an entire bingo book volume devoted to him and him alone.

_Those Dammed Uchihas'!!!!_

Seeing Naruto flinch at her show of the deadly killer intent that always managed to manifest itself whenever either of the infamous Uchiha Brothers came up and worrying about what her rage would do to her unborn child (her baby kicked like a pissed off mule on soldier pills whenever Tsunade got angry), Tsunade calmed down to a point where Jiraiya Junior was happy and relaxed before facing Naruto. Taking a deep breath, Konoha's Fifth Fire Shadow told the nineteen year old young man that she was sentencing him to teach at the academy alongside Iruka.

"Besides Naruto, you can use your Kage Bunshin and their henge ability to teach history lessons about each of the four previous Hokages. I'll even let you use some of the classified information in the Hokage library to help your lectures. I know you already have a few of his specially designed kunai and have learned or figured out the basic mechanics of his Hirashin so you can demonstrate that jutsu to the students. You may have doubts about teaching but all you have to do is be yourself. You're already the academies number one success story. Each individual of the Genin Twelve, with some notable exceptions, are shinobi the newer generations can look up to. Naruto, you and your eleven friends are the living epitome of the Will of Fire that burns throughout our village and keeps it strong. Neji, TenTen, Lee, Shikamaru, Ino, Chouji, Kiba, Hinata, Shino, You, Sakura, and even Sasuke; the twelve of you are the Eternal Flames of Konoha. The present day academy-age students need the benefit of your hope and inner fire. Out of the twelve; only you, Sakura, and-if he hadn't turned traitor-Sasuke would have possibly been added to the list of possible future hokages.", exclaimed Tsunade as she saw his eyebrows wrinkle up in preparation for his denouement of the assignment.

Naruto halted his developing protest at Tsunade's decision when her words registered in his mind. Closing his eyes and crossing his arms across his broad chest as was his wont whenever he was thinking hard, Naruto weighed the pros and cons of the Hokage's punishment. Deciding that he could weather this little setback like he had weathered all of the others in his nineteen formative years, Naruto nodded his acceptance of his new assignment and tried to mentally schedule his day so that he and his team could still do D-Rank missions. Snapping his fingers in realization, the ANBU Black Op known as Coyote asked the boss if his team of genin could be his assistants during class. Tsunade agreed but on the condition that Hanabi, Chitose, and Junichi not be allowed in her personal library since they were only genin and as such, had nowhere the clearance to read or research anything in Konoha's Hokage Library. Usually Naruto didn't have the clearance either but Tsunade could request that he be cleared to research anything in the library except for the items classified 'Hokage's Eyes Only'. Hell, when Tsunade herself decided to do her on research on those items, the whole library was cleared and nobody was allowed in. Even Shizune, aide to Tsunade, wasn't allowed entry into the library when her Hokage wanted to read those highly classified materials (although somehow, Jiraiya managed to gain entry to the Hokage Library one night while his wife was doing some classified research. Of course, Tsunade made him pay for his boldness after she returned home that night).

Seeing the acceptance of his punishment in those clear blue eyes, Tsunade suggested that Naruto go home and relax. He had a busy day of teaching to prepare for tomorrow. Once the blonde had left, Tsunade sighed and leaned back in her chair and turned to a blank section of the wall.

"Alright hon, drop the jutsu. I've known that you were here ever since those four troublemakers first arrived. Your 'Invisibility Jutsu' is good but you still have a little bit of work to do on it. You've been leaking miniscule amounts of chakra for quite awhile. Now c'mere and take me home. Your child is giving my belly a workout.", commented Tsunade.

"Awww puddin' cup, I was hoping you wouldn't notice me. I just wanted to hear their excuses. You know me; if they were good, I was gonna put 'em in my next book. You ruined my fun!", whined Jiraiya as he let his jutsu fade out.

"Yeah, I do know you. That's why I ordered them to tell me the straight skinny and cut them off before they could even start making excuses. Although Shikamaru's saying that they were only helping a lady in distress, I didn't believe it for a second. First off, if she was just a lady, she wouldn't have found the place. That leads me to believe that the woman in question is a kunoichi of immense skill. And second, the description those three imbeciles gave me reminds me of someone I knew years ago. Long starlight hair curled up and draped over a shoulder, white mask with black stripes along one side of the front, scarred face, and cinnamon brown eyes.", mused Tsunade as she tapped a pink painted fingernail along her chin.

"And don't forget the C-cup chest Kiba mentioned. I believe he said that the woman was almost as big in the chest as you and Shizune. Naruto mentioned something about stacked but I didn't catch it.", joked Jiraiya as he gently settled his large hand on Tsunade's shoulders.

Tsunade rolled her eyes at her husbands' words. Of course he'd mention something like that. Granted she was grateful that the dog handler had politely mentioned her sore 'assets' in a politically correct, non-perverted way. Deciding to chastise her husband for his words and secretly hoping for another one his orgasmic massages, Tsunade turned around in Jiraiya's arms and faced him.

"Dear, I love you most wholeheartedly but you are such a baka about the simplest things. With our child growing within me I'm nearly an E-cup in the chest, or so says Shizune. Plus Shizune's tits are a small D-cup not a large C-Cup. Kiba must be blind or he's been comparing the breasts of other women to those of his wife. I just hope he's using his eyes only and not his hands. Aisha would castrate him if she discovered he was using his hands in non-shinobi ways.

"Either that or she would make him 'forget' by giving him a long workout. I have a feeling that she's going to be requesting that her husband gets a few days off for 'recovery from wounds sustained in a full contact sparring match.' Don't you?", stated Jiraiya as he rested his chin on top of his wife's head.

Tsunade heard the change in the timber of his voice and knew he had something on his mind and was deciding on whether or not to tell her. Wanting her massage and wanting to know what was troubling him, Tsunade joked that she had already mentally granted Aisha Inuzuka's request.

While Jiraiya and Tsunade were enjoying the blissful silence that came with being completely relaxed around each other, Naruto was entering his house. Slipping off his shinobi footwear, Naruto sighed and headed for the comfortable chair after closing the door. Stopping by a small memorial shrine with seven black framed pictures, Naruto knelt and began praying for his deceased jinchuuriki contemporaries.

"My seven brothers and sisters, even though we never met during our combined time on this planet, I feel that we have been together in spirit. I feel your life's trials and tribulations as if they were my own. We are from separate villages but we shared a bond closer than blood relatives. If those evil men and women from Akatsuki had not been around, I believe that we would've found each other and realized that the differences and hatred between our villages could've been resolved without war. I believe that if they had continued to treat us with wariness and hatred, the nine of us would have more than likely started our own village where we would have helped each other deal with our curses and brought our plight to the attention of everyone in each of the Five Great Nations and beyond. I would have fought to protect you and I know you would have returned the favor. We would've defended ourselves and those that followed to the last. Each and every day I am alive, I will fight with all my heart and soul to remember my family of fellow outcasts. My jinchuuriki brothers and sisters may your souls rest in peace. I, Naruto Uzumaki, will fight to keep your memories alive so that when I rejoin you in the afterlife you will be proud of me and we can reunite and be the family were weren't allowed to be in the living world.", prayed Naruto as he lifted his head and opened his watering eyes and gazed fondly at the portraits of his brothers and sisters.

If one had been there, one would've noticed that the blonde's eyes lingered for a second longer on the picture of a laughing blonde woman. If they had read the name carved into the frame underneath the photo, those bystanders would have gasped in shock as they made the connection. The laughing blonde Naruto gazed lovingly at was Yugito Nii, the container of the Nekomata; Nibi, the Two-Tailed Cat.

Finishing his moment of retrospection, Naruto rose to his feet and continued on into his spacious kitchen. He remembered the fight he'd had with Ero-sennin when he requested that the Toad Sannin acquire the pictures. Jiraiya had refused point blank. Naruto had erupted in to a rage and cursed the famous author while chasing him all over Konoha. Finally, after Naruto had threatened Jiraiya with a public castration at the hands of the Konoha Kunoichi's Club, the aging author had relented and sent word out to his spy network to gather, by hook or by crook, the requested photos. Of course Jiraiya, being himself, had changed his tune when he saw a picture of Yugito and recognized her naturally ethereal beauty.

Passing through his living room, Naruto spared a glance at the full-size portrait hanging up above the fireplace. The portrait was of two Jonin level shinobi dressed in exquisite formal wear. The blonde shinobi in the picture was recognizable to everyone in Konoha. Indeed, his visage solemnly gazed out over his responsibility from the mountain behind the tower that had been his office for a tragically short time. He was Konoha's Fourth Fire Shadow; The Yondaime Hokage. His name: Minato Namikaze. Konoha's Yellow Flash Ninja.

And the father of the hyperactive knuckleheaded ninja known as: Naruto Uzumaki

Sitting in the chair next to Minato was a beautiful redhead with an impish grin hidden within her genuine smile shining from the portrait. With her gloved hand resting possessively yet lovingly upon the hand gently grasping her shoulder and her ninja headband securely fastened above her forehead and proudly proclaiming her as heralding from the former Hidden Whirlpool Village with its engraved symbol of a series of lines swirling away from their nexus, Kushina Uzumaki looked as if it was the happiest day of her life, not foreseeing the tragedy that would come to the newlywed couple a few years later.

Entering the kitchen, Naruto paused for a moment as he looked around at how organized his mother had kept the kitchen; a place for everything and everything in its place. From the gleaming pans hanging over the kitchen's island counter, to the expensive silverware locked in their drawers, Naruto knew where everything was. Stepping over to the stainless steel sink, Naruto grimaced at the few dishes he'd left to be washed after cooking and eating breakfast that morning. To him, the dishes he'd left in the sink made Naruto feel as if he was dishonoring his mother by not promptly cleaning his dishes when he'd finished his morning meal.

Gazing out the clear window over the sink at the small secluded forest, Naruto washed his dishes and put them away after they were dry. Going over to the modest refrigerator and opening it, Naruto retrieved a bottle of orange juice and headed for his favorite spot in the entire house. Leaving the kitchen after deciding to cook later, the teen headed for the atrium and settled into his favorite comfortable chair and turned to watch the sunset. Listening to the quiet and peaceful neighborhood sounds, the nineteen year-old Jonin again marveled at how he had received the house he presently lived in.

Upon becoming a Tokubetsu Jonin, Naruto had returned to his apartment only to step inside and realize that while he'd been out, his dwelling had changed. Somehow, the apartment seemed to recognize its residents' new rank and had revealed some of the secrets that had been hidden within. One of those secrets had been hidden behind Naruto's closet where a panel had noiselessly slid aside and revealed a unique kunai embedded in the wall. A curious Naruto had tried to pull the kunai out only to fail miserably. Irritated at his failure, Naruto had formed a Rasengan and altered it to where the fluctuating sphere of blue chakra had formed around his hand like Kakashi's Raikiri or the teme's Chidori.

With his hand so covered, Naruto had once again taken a hold of the kunai and pulled. This time the knife reacted and before he knew it, Naruto was engulfed in a bright flash and the familiar surroundings of his apartment disappeared only to be replaced by the unfamiliar sights of a beautiful garden in desperate need of care somewhere on the other side of the village. Shaken out of his amazement by the smell of the garden, Naruto had looked around. Stepping off the circular stone he'd reappeared on, Naruto's stubbed his toe against what looked like a rusted kunai buried hilt-up in the dirt. Confused, the seventeen year old had knelt down to study the hindrance only to come fully upright when he heard an unfamiliar pair of voices.

_"It took him long enough but I knew he would ultimately make it.", _came one voice.

_ "It's about time too. Another few months and we would've been forced to kidnap him and bring him here before dispelling ourselves. That would not have been a good thing. There are still things he needs to learn bout his inheritance."_, replied a distinctly female voice with a familiar tone to it.

Naruto had whipped around and for the first time in his life saw his parents in person. As he learned a few minutes later the two shinobi in front of him were not his parents but were a pair of Kage Bunshins created by his parents and tied to their house soon after Lady Kushina had become pregnant with him. At the time of the sealing, both Minato and Kushina had known that they wouldn't live to see their son grow up. They also knew that once both of them had passed into the afterlife, unscrupulous beings (most notably those dammed Uchiha's and that bastard Danzou from Root) would do anything and everything to get into their home and find all of the secrets the Namikaze's were hiding.

So to protect the family secrets after the death of their primaries, the clones were programmed with a memory block that could only be removed by one of Namikaze Blood. Therefore, the secrets hidden within the house wouldn't be discovered. According to the clones, Naruto was supposed to have been given this house when he made Chunin. When he wasn't, the clones found themselves in a quandary. Their chakra levels had dropped to just above the level needed to keep themselves from dispelling and they hadn't been able to find a way to replenish themselves since Tsunade had started sealing up Naruto's DNA with a special jutsu they couldn't get around to protect Naruto's sacred bloodline. The two clones had discussed this problem in depth and were seconds away from enacting their plan when the child of their master and mistress found his way there on his own.

Finishing his orange juice and rinsing his glass out, Naruto gazed out at his backyard and suppressed a sigh. Naruto knew that less than a thousand feet away from him in a deep thicket was a place so sacred that an above Kage-level subtle Genjutsu protected it. Village lore stated that after his battle with the rampaging Kyuubi, the body of the Yondaime was cremated and buried under a magnificent headstone in the shinobi cemetery.

Only half of that legend is true.

The cremated remains of The Yondaime Hokage, Konoha's Yellow Flash, and those of his wife Kushina; the Whirlpool Village's 'Crimson Cyclone', were buried at the request of their extremely classified wills, deep within the forest behind their modest two story house. Since Master Jiraiya was the only person who knew exactly where Minato and Kushina wanted to be buried (they'd shown the area to him many times whenever the old pervert visited to check on how Kushina's pregnancy was moving along), Jiraiya and the Sandaime had come up with a plan to move the remains from where they were interred to the location designated by their wills.

Knowing what the Pervy-Sage had risked to abide by the last wishes of his student and also knowing what Jiraiya risked if it ever became public knowledge that he had removed the remains of the beloved Fourth Fire Shadow and his wife from their eternal resting place, Naruto kept his mouth shut and allowed his respect and esteem for the Toad Sage grow. Deciding to go and visit the two modest headstones and spiritually converse with his progenitors, Naruto stepped out on his back porch and slipped his feet into a pair of moccasins and stepped out into the twilight. Strolling away from the house, the blonde came upon a well-worn natural cobblestone footpath. Following the path's meandering line for several yards, Naruto came to a well-hidden dirt path traveling further into the trees. Twenty or so paces up the dirt path, Naruto came to a pair of hidden statues whose faces were worn away by their years of standing guard over this place.

Stepping in between the statues, the nineteen year old Jonin put his hands together in a handsign so ancient, no one presently alive in Konoha knew of it. Concentrating on what he had to do, Naruto whispered _'Kai'_ and the illusion cast over the area by the most powerful Genjutsu Mistress of the Yondaime's time wavered and allowed Naruto to step into the clearing finally see with his own eyes the two headstones he'd visited many times since moving in.

The granite markers standing before him had been secretly transported here by the same Genjutsu user who had cast the illusion spell in the first place and had given the scroll to Jiraiya to pass on to Naruto when he came of age. Once that had been done, the Kunoichi had committed suicide to keep the secret she knew from being revealed. She was buried in the cemetery next to where the village thought their Fourth Hokage and his wife were taking their eternal rest and her name was on the memorial statue.

Engraved in the headstones were the names of the shinobi entombed underneath them, the years they were born, and the year they died. Also engraved into the polished granite was their befitting epitaph. As usual Naruto's laser blue eyes always alighted upon the other engravings within the stone: A nine-tailed fox surrounded by the personal crest of his parents, the combination of the insignias from their respective villages to form a more elaborate version of the Uzumaki Swirl Naruto wore on his shinobi gear.

Kneeling in the center of the stone circle in front of the headstone, Naruto closed his eyes and concentrated. Soon he could feel the mental link he had with the spirits of his parents tingling. A sure sign that the connection was being made. Soon, through his minds eye, Naruto could see the spiritual figures he'd came converse with. With their battle coats flowing in some ethereally (I love that word!!!!) spiritual breeze, the two figures approached the image of their son. As usual, the specter of Lady Kushina Uzumaki-Namikaze opened up the family conversation with a joke. Naruto didn't mind, he loved to hear her jokes.

In a dark corner of Naruto's mind, a blazing pair of slitted ruby red eyes observed the actions of the spiritually reunited family with a sense of loss. This time, the reunion was taking place as if it were a family dinner. Kyuubi wondered what could have his container so mentally disturbed that the moron would consult with his deceased parents instead of with him. The nine-tailed fox didn't harbor any malice towards the man who'd sealed him here. On the contrary, he respected him. He was protecting his precious people. If the situation were reversed, Kyuubi would've done the same thing.

As he continued to watch the interplay between the two blondes and the redhead, Kyuubi sighed in resignation. He missed his family and wondered how his two fox cousins were doing. Occasionally, he was invited to participate in the discussions between his container and the spirits of his container's deceased parents although he had to be loosely restrained from causing any mayhem. During the meetings he attended, Kyuubi and his sealer got along smashingly well, much to the surprise of Naruto and to the amusement of Lady Kushina (Kyuubi still remembered the last meeting he attended. And the spiritual Hang Over that had resulted from it).

Deciding to leave the family alone for a bit, Kyuubi sighed and closed his eyes. He was tired and wanted to get some sleep.

_**&&&&&&&&**_

In Konoha, a month had passed and everything was almost back to normal. Anko and her temporary team had returned from their mission (fifty assassinations in two weeks. Anko was a very giggly kunoichi on the way home). Shikamaru Nara had returned from an assignment to Suna that got quite physical. Temari helped her fiancée recover from Kankuro's rough treatment. (Lady Yoshino had banished her son and future daughter-in-law to a small three room house on the Nara Clan Lands because they got too loud and interrupted her sleep at night). Kiba was finally off the couch (but still very much in the doghouse).

Over in the Hokage's building, the Hokage's staff was all taking bets on whether Tsunade would go into labor before, during, or after the Chunin exam. Since her mistress had decided to take the month off, Shizune was acting Hokage while Tsunade rested under Jiraiya's care (he refused to let anyone visit his wife during this time). Often times, the Toad Sannin was spotted as he ran errands.

There was a bit of hostility between the Yamanaka, Haruno, and Hyuuga Clans that made council meetings a bit of a chore. Somehow, the inevitable had happened and the Hyuuga Clan head had beaten her two rivals into the bed of one Naruto Uzumaki and, according to a blushing Lady Hinata, he'd been most charming and had helped her get over her nervousness at her actions . What was being kept secret was the fact that Hinata had conspired with Shikamaru and Kiba and had managed to get the blonde Jonin extremely drunk and had cast a strong Genjutsu over her prey.

Sakura and Ino had been royally pissed. They'd seen everything Hinata had done from right on the balcony of Naruto's apartment where the two of them had landed in separate attempts to do what the formerly quiet bluenette was presently doing. It turns out that Hinata was quite vocal when she's in the throes of passion.

Outside the Hokage's Tower, Sakura sighed in resignation as she remembered that night. She'd planned it so well, from purchasing the perfect lingerie (in shades of orange and black and quite sheer) from the specialty store 'Kunoichi's Secrets', to getting her parents to babysit her dark pink haired daughter Satsuki Haruno. Nothing could have stopped her from waking up in the warm embrace of her teammate. Unfortunately, Ino and Hinata had ruined her plans.

"_Damn those two!! Damn them to hell and back!! It was MY night, MY NIGHT to be his!"_, hissed Sakura as she pushed Satsuki in her stroller up to the bench she had chosen.

Taking a seat on her bench, Sakura unbuckled her daughter and lifted her out of her stroller and into her lap before letting the large diaper bag she carried slide off of her arm to rest on the ground. The almost two year old baby-girl looked around with an interested twinkle in her seagreen eyes (green eyes were a dominant trait among women of the Haruno Clan. Sakura's eyes were a cool mint green in color while her mother's eyes were a pale emerald green). The twenty-year old mother sighed in a relaxed happiness. With her shishou out dealing with her own pregnancy (and being spoiled rotten by her husband) and Shizune running things, Sakura had been able to bring Satsuki to work with her today. Usually, while she was at work, Satsuki was either in the daycare center at the hospital where Sakura was one of the senior department heads or her precocious little girl was being spoiled rotten by her grandparents.

Exhaling her exhaustion, Sakura leaned forward and attached a short length of material to the back of Satsuki's harness and placed her daughter on the well-manicured grass. Seeing the delight in those seagreen eyes, Sakura's heart skipped a beat and at that moment, Sakura knew what the most important thing in her life was. It wasn't being a jonin rank medical kunoichi nor was it lusting after her teammate. No, the most important thing in Sakura's life now was the eighteen month old life now crawling around in the grass in front of her. In her little jumpsuit, Satsuki Haruno had become the most important thing in her mother's life.

As she watched her child with a weepy smile on her face, Sakura heard familiar footsteps and looked up. Smothering her initial reaction to frown, Sakura gazed up at her blonde haired best friend and her equally blond son.

"Ino."

"Sakura."

"How are you and Inoiki doing?"

"Fine, just came from the hospital where he had a check-up. Mind if I sit down?", asked Ino.

Sakura looked up at the Yamanaka Heiress and slid over to make room. As Ino lowered herself to the bench with a sigh, Sakura saw that the former fashion-loving kunoichi had forsaken her old midriff baring tops and tight battle skirts for a comfortable calf-length purple sundress. The pinkette chuckled as she looked at her own attire. She'd gone from the knee-length battle dress she'd worn as a genin to short sleeved or sleeveless short battle skirt/shorts to wearing something similar to what either Lady Tsunade wore or what Lady Shizune wore. Of course it was in her favorite color and shade of red but still it was a big change for both of them. Ino heard her friend and narrowed her eyes as she placed her son on the ground next to Satsuki after attaching his own harness.

"What's so funny Forehead?", snapped Ino although the greeting lacked its usual insult and fire.

Sakura waved a hand at what two of were wearing before replying.

"This, this is funny. Look at us, we used to be two of the best dressed and most fashion forward kunoichi in our age group. Now here we are parents of our own children, by the same father mind you, wearing stuff that we vowed we'd never wear as we got older. You remember. We always said that when we became adults we'd dress like Anko or Kurenai.", chuckled Sakura.

Ino thought for a moment before letting a grin as a big as a ray of sunlight spread all over her face. She remembered those times, remembered them well. Ino's grin broke out into a laugh.

"Yeah, I remember. All the girls in our class except for Hinata vowed to wear as little as possible when we became Chunin and Jonin and were going on missions. Yet with all that we had to deal with, we could never manage it and our girlhood promise was forgotten. Although we did, unconsciously fulfill that promise when we were fifteen and sixteen.", replied Ino.

"Then it resurfaced again when Naruto became a jonin when we were seventeen. Plus our infatuation with Sasuke shifted over to Naruto.", returned Sakura.

Ino chuckled a bit more as she watched as her son and Sakura's daughter played quietly together with their toys. Adjusting her sunglasses, the blonde interrogator asked her friend when she'd fallen in love with the orange-clad shinobi.

"I don't know Ino. Probably around the same time as you did. During my pregnancy, the dear boy was always over at my parents' house checking on me, making sure I rested, making sure I ate. He even stopped by one cold morning just to carry me to an appointment I had with Tsunade midway through my pregnancy when I was really sick during my second trimester. It got to the point that I wanted him in that delivery room with me when Satsuki was born.", sighed Sakura as she brushed a strand of pink out of her eye.

"Yeah, I know what you mean. He was there for me as well. Naruto was more like an expectant father. Always walking with me to my appointments, checking up on me during the day when I was home. He told me once, and I believe that he did the same thing with you since we were pregnant at the same time, that if he had to leave on a mission during my pregnancy, whenever he returned he would come check on me before reporting to the Hokage and turning in his report.", replied Ino.

Sakura nodded as she remembered the kindness that Naruto shared with them equally. When she had her mood swings, Naruto was there to take any and all of her punches and kicks. Closing her eyes and smiling, Sakura thought about the times since Satsuki was born and he'd offer to take care of her whenever Sakura got busy. Sakura assumed that her teammate did the same for Ino and wondered what Naruto did to keep the attentions of both children since Satsuki always cried whenever her mother came to pick her up from her 'Uncle Naruto'.

Lost in thought neither Sakura nor Ino reacted when a familiar long-haired kunoichi timidly approached them. When the kunoichi was less than two feet away, both the blonde and the pinkette reacted and snatched weapons from their packs. It took a second for both women to recognize the addition to the group and when they did, the pair wanted to groan. However the look on the woman's face stilled their protests.

"Hinata.", both Ino and Sakura stated.

"Ino, Sakura. Nice to see you today.", replied the Hyuuga Clan head.

"Feelings mutual, how are you today?"

"Just left the hospital after taking a few tests and receiving my regular check-up. Other than that I'm fine."

Ino and Sakura glanced at each other out of the corner of their eyes. Something wasn't adding up here. This Hinata reminded them of the timid girl they knew back in the academy. Not the confident woman recently promoted to Tokubetsu Jonin and head of her own Clan. Before they could comment on it, the lavender-eyed girl broke down and started crying and beginning their forgiveness for her actions. Ino and Sakura looked at each other again with confused looks on their faces. What was Hinata apologizing for?

Seeing that she was closer, Sakura gently patted Hinata's head and soothed her tears. Hearing the hiccupped reason why Hinata was apologizing, Sakura stilled for a moment. Just as she was about to comment, the medical kunoichi saw her daughter crawl up in Hinata's lap and sit there with her thumb in her mouth while looking at her mother with those expressive seagreen eyes. Taking a deep breath, Sakura started to speak again.

"Hinata, why should you be apologizing to us about what you did? You loved him before either of us did and you stuck by him even during the time he was absent from the village. While Ino and I were still lusting after the bastard, you never wavered in your love for Naruto. You saw who he was and how kind he could be before we even realized it. You deserve to have lost your virginity to him. He was the first and only man you ever loved. Ino and I, we were fools. But now we realize what is more important to us than loving Naruto. My daughter is more important to me now than some lust for Naruto. I'm sure Ino feels the same. Right now, I just want to go back to our friendship from those times."

A teary-eyed Hinata looked up and saw the gleam of truth in Sakura's eyes and the same thing in Ino's eyes. Feeling a sense of sisterhood with the blonde and the pinkette, Hinata felt better and wasn't as worried about the news she' just received from her doctor. Taking a deep breath, Hinata decided to tell her rivals….no her friends the news.

Grasping Ino's hand with her left hand and Sakura's hand with her right, Hinata told them the news.

She was pregnant with Naruto's child.

Behind the three women, TenTen stood with Temari as both kunoichi observed the reborn friendship between the classmates. Grinning to herself, TenTen turned to her friend and exclaimed.

"About dammed time those three got their act together. It was beginning to wear on my nerves!"

Temari looked at TenTen and chuckled.

"Bullshit Ten-chan!!! To you this was like one of those pervy daytime soap operas you love to watch."

"I'm not the only one 'mari-chan. Remember you stopped by my house frantic about missing even a little bit of 'Shinobi Hospital'.", laughed TenTen as she turned her attention from where Hinata was playing with the newest additions to the Haruno and Yamanaka Households.

_**&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&**_

_And with those words, I close the book on Chapter Two of 'Promises in Snow and Ice'. I hope you enjoyed reading this._

_First off, I would like to give much thanks to one of the best Beta-Readers (and one Shit Hot Author in her own right) I've ever had. Lovesrainscent, Thank you again for helping me get this chapter done and keeping it legible and understandable. I owe you more than I can ever repay! ____ Y'all have got to read her stories, especially her YoshinoxShikaku story 'Holding Out for a Hero'. In this chapter, I wrote Yoshino Nara the way she was meant to be. LRS blazed the way with her portrayal of the Matriarch of the Nara Clan and the mother of Konoha's Lazy Genius._

_Next, for those of you HinataxNaruto shippers doing the happy dance after reading the scene between Hinata, Ino, and Sakura, I am going to reiterate my point: _**This is a NarutoxYukie(Koyuki) pairing!!! Not** **A NarutoxHinata or NarutoxHarem fic!!!**_ I wrote that scene because I felt that since I'm about to crush Hinata's dreams of marrying Naruto, I'd better give her the consolation prize of being the mother of Naruto's first born!! I'm not such a cruel guy afterall!!! ___

_Next, the part about Naruto reuniting spiritually with his birth parents was an in depth variation of something I read in Simon R. Green's book 'Beyond the Blue Moon'. Read that awesome book to figure out what I'm talking about. _

_Preview Time!!!!!_

_Ne_xt _chapter, I'm going to reveal more about the mystery woman Tsunade was referring to when she was punishing Konoha's Party Boy Posse. Shizune gets some!! ;) You can thank LRS for authoring Shizune's lemon scene and find out who Shizune was lusting after earlier in this chapter. I GUARON-DAMN-TEE Y'all, its gonna come waaay outta right field and You'll be-hopefully-pleasantly surprised! Also, Tsunade gives birth, the Chunin Exam (and another surprise there), and possibly the start of Naruto's search to keep his promise; plus he learns a new jutsu._

_For you Uchiha lovers, there is a strong possibility that the Uchiha brothers might make an appearance next chapter Since I haven't started writing the chapter yet, I haven't completely decided whether or not to let them slither their way in or have them cool their Sharingan heels until the following chapters. One last thing before I sign off for now; keep in mind that I'm only up to Naruto Manga Volume 31 so, I might be completely off the storyline in some respects as I write this story. I'm also introducing a new group of villains. I will reveal here that they are second tier (more powerful) members of the dreaded Akatsuki. I'm still mentally debating the addition so they may be 'round filed' before I even start writing about them._

_Tune in for the next exciting chapter of 'Promises in Snow and Ice'!!! I'll sure as shootin' see you there!!_

_Knightewolfe_

_**Knightewolfe's Lair**_

_**11/08**_


	4. Chapter 4

_**Turning the page to the next chapter.**_

_**Promises in Snow and Ice.**_

_**Chapter 4.**_

Lady Yoshino Nara glanced at the wall clock and quietly cursed as she saw that according to the clock it was still unbelievably early for her to be awake. Leaning against the wall, the matriarch of the Nara Clan sighed as she closed her eyes and enjoyed the scent of her favorite extremely potent coffee. Letting the smell of the Yemeni beans waft over her, the 45 year old kunoichi relaxed and opened her eyes. Looking around the antechamber to Lady Tsunade's office and categorizing the Chuunin and Jonin level shinobi scattered around the room, Yoshino ignored the glares being cast her way from several of her contemporaries pissed off because she had been the first one to arrive and (as tradition dictated) had filled the coffee pot with those infernal beans the Nara Matriarch always had a hankering for, Yoshino wondered again why Tsunade had requested her presence at this organizational meeting for the upcoming Chuunin exams.

Forty-five minutes prior to her arrival, the inactive Jonin kunoichi had been snoozing happily in her husbands arms after 'thanking' him for the exquisite birthday celebration he'd put together the day before for her birthday. The lazy man had awoken her that morning by cooking her breakfast in bed and singing her favorite song.

"Ah, I love 'Three Times a Lady' by the Commodores.", giggled Yoshino as she took a sip from her coffee mug.

As she enjoyed her cuppa, Yoshino let her eyes wander around the room. She spotted the head of the Hatake Clan (his snow white face mask now speckled with small swatches of color) as he stood behind his seated wife. Yoshino lifted an eyebrow as she noticed that Kakashi wasn't wearing the cloak of his clan. A closer inspection revealed that the grey and white cloak was draped over Anko's petite form. Seeing that Anko wasn't wearing her usual protective mesh shirt, Yoshino smothered a chuckle as she realized that Konoha's Mistress of Death was presently breast-feeding one of her twins. Shifting her gaze back to Sharingan Kakashi, the Nara Matriarch saw that the silver-haired former ANBU Black Op captain had a baby carrier slung over his shoulder. From the pouch in front, Yoshino saw the light purple-silver hair of Rin Hatake as she watched her father dangle a set of keys just out of her reach.

Remembering when her son was that small, Yoshino laughed to herself as she shifted her over to where Shikamaru was standing with the rest of the Eleven Eternal Flames of Konoha….minus one. Before she could process where Shikamaru's other blonde friend was, Yoshino heard an annoyed rustling and turned her head over to where two of the Inuzuka Clan stood. Her preternaturally sharp eyes picked out the fact that her old academy classmate Tsume Inuzuka stood with her daughter Hana. Tsume was casting worried glances around the room as if she was searching for someone while oblivious to the lustful glances Hana was casting at Iruka Umino. Nobody except Yoshino noticed that the attractive academy instructor was returning Hana's looks with a reddish gaze of his own.

Soon the door to Lady Tsunade's office opened and Shizune waved everyone in. Following the crowd, Yoshino entered the inner sanctum sanctorum and jockeyed for a spot by the window next to her husband. Turning her attention to the massive desk at the front of the room, Yoshino spotted the Hokage reclining in a sinfully comfortable lounge with Master Jiraiya standing a pensively protective guard. From the grimace in Lady Tsunade's eyes and her own experience, Yoshino could see that the Hokage was more than ready to give birth. Yoshino caught Tsunade's eyes and nodded her acknowledgement of the position the Hokage was in.

When Tsunade returned her look with a painful grin, Yoshino leaned into Shikaku's arms and waited for the expectant mother to start the meeting.

_**&&&&&&&**_

At the gates of Konoha, Ebisu cursed when he looked at the clock and saw that he still had three hours to go until his shift ended. To the jonin time seemed to pass excruciatingly slow and Ebisu sighed as he wondered for the umpteenth time why he'd allowed Master Jiraiya to talk him into filling in as a gate guard during the meeting that was presently going on in the Hokage Tower.

"Of all the….either I'm a nice guy or I'm so hard up for reading material that I'd jump at the chance to get a signed copy of Jiraiya's new Icha Icha book before Kakashi did.", groaned Ebisu as he rotated his chair back to the front of the guard shack.

The high level Chuunin on duty with Ebisu sighed as he listened to the jonin's complaint for the hundredth or so time this shift. Reading the list of scheduled arrivals in front of him, the Chuunin wondered what it would take to get Ebisu to shut the fuck up. He was tired of hearing him complain like clockwork every hour. Glaring at the back of his superior's head, the Chuunin went back to his thoughts on what he'd have to eat when his relief arrived.

_**&&&&&&**_

Across the village at one of Konoha's exquisite beaches, Naruto Uzumaki relaxed as he stretched out on his orange and black surfboard and waited for a perfect wave. Scattered around him on boards of their own were the members of his team of genin. Closing his eyes and listening to the relaxed chatter of the trio, Naruto grinned as he heard Hanabi subtly encourage her male teammate in his romantic pursuit of her cousin. Of course Hanabi made sure that Junichi didn't know that she was helping her cousin realize her developing attraction to the junior pervert.

Naruto chuckled as he remembered the fight that had happened when Junichi had revealed that he'd won the writing contest by sending in a story based on the fights between the two Hyuuga. The fourteen year old boy had been beaming when the revered author had shunshined to where they were training under Naruto's watchful eyes to present the genin with his award. Of course Jiraiya being who he was, he'd immediately commented on the budding Hyuuga beauties and smacked Junichi on the back for his choice in women. This had ended when Lady Tsunade had arrived and sent her husband into low-earth orbit with a subdued punch due to her late pregnancy (poor Jiraiya, he can't win for losing when it came to his special lady).

Feeling a change in the light breeze, Naruto opened his eyes and rolled over on to his stomach while looking behind him to search for the wave he knew was coming. Seeing the wave as it developed, Naruto glanced over at his students and grinned as he saw them setting up to catch the wave.

"They deserve this short vacation before dealing with the stress that is the Chuunin Exam. I'm happy that I've kept them out of the exam these past couple of years. I don't know if they could've handled it without the extra experience and training in teamwork they've received.", mused Naruto as he got his board moving.

Hearing the excited yells of enjoyment from his team, Naruto rose to his feet, threw his head back, and joined in the merriment as he proceeded to show his students just why he was the most hyperactive knuckleheaded shinobi in the entire Hidden Leaf Village.

_**&&&&&&&**_

Jiraiya was in a hurry as he rushed towards the front gate. He had to get to Ebisu and give him his 'scheduled' assignment for the second part of the Chuunin Exam before somebody else did. Giving the slip of paper in his hand a quick glance, Jiraiya grinned as he read the writing on the sheet.

'_Ebisu - Observation Tower. Training Ground 44' _

It had taken Jiraiya an entire week to forge his wife's handwriting on this specific assignment sheet after Tsunade had inadvertently left the list on her desk. He'd just popped in to check on the love of his life and had spotted her asleep at her desk with the list on top of the stack of other assignments. Upon spotting Shizune's name as being assigned to the tower for the second part of the exam, Jiraiya had taken it upon himself to make his wife's assistant extremely happy.

Two months previously, Jiraiya had stumbled on to the fact that Shizune was lusting hard for his number 2 fan after observing the young woman continuously gazing at the completely oblivious Jonin while he and his genin team were accepting a high C/low B-rank mission in the mission room. Judicious use of his 'Invisibility Jutsu' had gotten him the whole story about her crush on Ebisu. Deciding to play secret matchmaker, Jiraiya vowed to get the two together by any means possible. It had become exponentially harder to do when it became apparent that Tsunade did not have any clue that her seemingly innocent and virgin assistant had the hots for the sensei for the genin team of the Sandaime's grandson.

Breathing a sigh of relief as he approached the guard shack at the front gates, Jiraiya saw that Ebisu was turning the duty over to his relief (a low-level jonin from the village defense reserve cell) and preparing to head home to get some sleep. Raising his hand and calling out for the Jonin to wait, Jiraiya mentally smirked. If his actions didn't get Ebisu and Shizune together romantically, who knows what would.

Besides, if it worked, Jiraiya could always trick Tsunade into using her crystal ball and finding out about the relationship. If it didn't work, well, it'd give him some new material to work with for his next book.

_**&&&&&&&&&&&**_

_(__Author_'s _note__ – The following lemon scene was not written by me. It was written by Her Excellency Lovesrainscent. It should seem familiar to a lot of readers as it is LRS' Ebisu/Shizune lemon one-shot __**'**__**Rules Are Made To Be Followed'. **__While I was working on 'Promises' Chapter 3, I broached the idea of an EbisuxShizune lemon with Lovesrainscent. She agreed and I asked her to write it since her skill at writing Naruto lemon scenes is almost unparalled. My only request was that if she wanted to post it as a one-shot, I requested she wait until after Chapter 3 of 'Promises in Snow and Ice' was posted on ff [dot]net. LRS agreed and soon after I posted Chapter 3, she posted 'Rules Are….'. I hope that those who read this chapter of 'Promises' get the chance to read her fic 'Rules Are Made to be Followed' and enjoy the lemony fresh fluffiness that is Ebisu and Shizune. Once again, all of the credit for the following lemon scene goes to Her Most Excellent Purveyor of odd Naruto pairing lemons LovesRainScent. Please honor her by giving her a round of applause!!! ____ LRS, thanks again for writing this lemon. I am extremely grateful that you agreed to write this scene. Knightewolfe. Now my dear readers, on with the lemon!!!)_

Shizune looked forlornly around the deserted control room in the observation tower in the Forest of Death. She sighed heavily and sat her small overnight bag down beside the lumpy old sofa in the room. Of all the assignments to draw, this had to be the worst. This was Anko's usual mission but since she was still not yet back on full time duty since the birth of her twins, someone else would have to be manning the control room during this round of the Chuunin exams.

She looked out the window, taking in the sounds and smells of the forest at night. She didn't find it creepy or scary, just boring. She never would understand why Anko loved this place. It was just so ...lonely.

As if it wasn't lonely enough here in the tower at night in preparation for the beginning of the exams tomorrow, she'd had to spend the entire day near the elite Jounin who was her current secret crush (known only to herself and Master Jiraiya) Ebisu. He'd had business in the Hokage Tower all day it seemed and she'd literally bumped into him several times throughout the day.

He fueled her fantasies now the same way he had done in the days before she left Konoha with Lady Tsunade. More so, even. They'd been practically kids when she'd left - he was just her first school-girl crush. But lately, as his missions kept him more involved in the day to day comings and goings in the business center of Konoha she found herself drawn to the man he had become. His deep voice thrilled her. She was fascinated by thoughts of the eyes that lay behind his glasses.

And all these thoughts were doing her not one single damn bit of good stuck here alone in this tower tonight.

She sighed again and pushed away from the window sill. The thick summer air was humid and muggy, causing her clothes to cling to her. Shizune was miserable.

Abso-fucking-lutely miserable and alone and hot and humid and horny.

Nothing to do but take a shower, Shizune thought to herself as she yanked a clean t-shirt and panties from the bag she'd packed. She stalked to the small, utilitarian bath and started the water running, a nice cold shower would cool her down so that she could sleep, she hoped.

A few minutes later she emerged feeling only slightly refreshed, but after drying and slipping into the t-shirt and panties she realized that a cold shower had been the wrong way to go. Whatever conventional wisdom said about men using a cold shower to take their mind off certain things, it clearly did not apply to her. The cold water had caused her nipples to become rock-hard. Even the soft fabric of the t-shirt brushing against them chafed. And the chafing only made things worse, harder.

Shizune flopped down in frustration on the old sofa that was one of the few pieces of furniture in the control room. Covering herself with a light throw she tried to get comfortable but to no avail. Twisting and turning, she finally kicked the throw off and groaned. She'd never get to sleep tonight!

Her tits ached, nipples pebbled up so hard that even the cotton fabric was unbearable. She rubbed the heels of her palms over them but that wasn't helping. Idly she circled her fingertips around one nipple. Maybe...

Well, anything to relax and get some sleep...

Slipping one hand up under her shirt, she pinched her own nipple between thumb and forefinger. She closed her eyes, imagining that it wasn't her fingers doing the caressing, but Ebisu's twisting and pinching her, eliciting these little gasps of pleasure.

But Ebisu wouldn't only use his fingers, would he? No, if he were really here with her, he would use his lips and tongue to tease her, too, wouldn't he? Pausing, she withdrew her hand from under her shirt and licked her own fingers and thumb then slid them back to her breast, erect bud sliding easily beneath her now-slicked digits.

Oh, that was nice, while it lasted. But the problem was it didn't last, it was only a fake, a tease. The saliva from her fingers cooled and dried too fast. If Ebisu were here his tongue would stay warm and moist, swirling around her, his mouth would be hot, demanding, as he nipped and tugged at her.

And if Ebisu were here, there would be more than just her own slim fingers to dip beneath the waistband of her panties and play around in the wetness there, now wouldn't there?

Shizune let her legs shift apart to give herself better access to her own needs. Her right leg slipped off the couch, toes grazing the floor, while her left foot braced against the far arm of the couch. With her panties just down off one hip, two fingers of her left hand were slid deep inside herself, while her right hand toyed with her own nipple under her t-shirt.

Her eyes were closed and her cheeks flush, lips parted as she moaned, "Ohhh, Ebisu!"

It was in this state that Ebisu found her.

Master Jiraiya had sent him to the control tower in the Forest of Death this evening to prepare for the Chuunin exams. It seems there had been some sort of scheduling mix-up about whether or not Anko was proctoring this portion of the exam or not. Ebisu wasn't sure he'd gotten the full details of said schedule mix-up because Master Jiraiya had seemed somewhat rushed as he explained it to him. Nonetheless, he was pleased to accept the mission, even on such short notice, in the service of Konoha.

He'd arrived a little later than he had intended, dropping from the trees and landing silently on the window sill of the open window. Cautious, senses heightened because he hadn't expected anyone else to be in the tower this evening, he froze as he caught sight of Shizune sprawled on the couch and realized he was about to disturb her in a very private moment.

Torn between his overwhelming desire to watch conflicting with his desire to remain a gentleman and allow Shizune her privacy he perched on the window sill frozen in indecision, but still enjoying the show for quite some time. The stiffening sensation in his trousers reminded him just how much he was enjoying the show.

But when Shizune arched her back and called out his name it was too much. Ebisu lost his balance and tumbled off the sill into the room.

The sudden noise startled Shizune so that she tumbled off the couch rolling and grabbing a kunai in each hand, throwing the first one toward the direction of the sound. But he, whoever he was, was fast, too fast. He dodged the thrown knife and before she could even cock her hand back to throw the second one, he had her spun around, her back against his chest, her raised wrist in his hand, thumb pushing into the pressure point at the base of hers, forcing her grip on the kunai to weaken. Damn fast.

"Shizune!" he called, "Shizune, I'm sorry! I didn't know you were here. I just got here and...I'm sorry." Preferring to live, he hadn't yet released her until he was sure she was calmed down enough to realize he wasn't an unauthorized intruder.

"Ebisu?" she questioned recognizing his voice as understanding crept in. "Ebisu, it's you?" As his hold on her relaxed, she turned to face him, staring at him, starting to comprehend he was friend not foe, relief washed over her - for about one split second until she realized that he must have...seen...her. The color drained from her face. He dropped her arm and she whirled away from him.

"Ebisu?" She cleared her throat slightly and sat back down on the couch with her back to him. "How, er, long have you been here?"

"Oh, err, just got here, actually, must have missed the sill when I came down from the trees and fell...just got here." he fibbed.

Bullshit, she thought to herself. He was the best of the best - a teacher of the best shinobi in Konoha. No way had he missed that sill. So that meant...oh God, what had he seen? Worse yet, what had he heard?

"Look," he said, ", I am sorry...to have disturbed you, to have startled you. It's just that I was assigned to oversee things in the control tower for the Chuunin exams tomorrow and...it appears there's been a schedule mixup." He shrugged, thankful for his dark glasses so that she couldn't see the hungry look in his eyes right now and hoping that she would be polite enough to pretend not to notice the response of the rest of his body. "I'll sleep in another room so I don't disturb you."

"You can't," Shizune responded. "They're redoing all the cabling and have the ceiling tiles down and stuff scattered all over the floors throughout. So unless you want to sleep in a pile of drywall dust this is it."

"Oh," Ebisu replied uncomfortably. He looked around and took out his bedroll from his bag, unfurling it on the floor beside her. "Well, I'll let you get back to sleep then," he said, somewhat flustered, settling himself cross-legged on the floor with his back to her.

"I can't sleep," Shizune said.

"Oh."

The silence between them was deafening.

"Ebisu, are you tired?" Shizune was amazed at her own boldness. Perhaps it was the adrenaline rush from being startled earlier. Perhaps she was channeling her inner-Anko, being forthright and outspoken more than her usual self.

"No, but I'll just read a bit if it won't disturb you." Damn! Why had he said that he thought to himself. The only book he had with him was his latest Icha Icha volume, like that was going to help matters any.

"Oh."

The elite jounin made a point of searching noisily through his bag looking for his toothbrush and toothpaste.

"Ebisu, what did you see?"

The young man sat up straight, back rigid but still toward her. It wasn't like he needed any effort to recall how Shizune had looked lying back on the couch, legs apart, her own hand dipping beneath her red bikini panties, grey t-shirt hiked up above her waist.

"I saw you Shizune, I'm sorry that I startled you."

"Oh." Another long pause then she added, "Yes, but how did I look?"

"You were...on the couch..."

She waited for him to continue but when he didn't she prompted, "Well, did you pay attention? Was I sitting on the couch, lying on the couch, sleeping on the couch..." Emboldened, Shizune was smirking to herself, maybe there was some allure to this whole Forest of Death business. Maybe Anko was onto something after all.

With his back still to her, sitting completely still, Ebisu answered, "You were lying on your back on the couch." What was going on here? Was she playing a game with him? Did he need any more reason to be reminded of how she'd looked? For the rest of his life that image was going to be seared in his mind.

This was Shizune, his Hokage's personal assistant! Not that he didn't find her attractive, desirable, he certainly did. She was pretty, smart, funny and had a deep appreciation of the necessity of protocol and orderliness in business affairs. The Godaime's office ran much more smoothly with Shizune in place than they ever had for Sandaime. In a lot of ways, Shizune was all he could ever want in a girl. But his own appreciation of protocol and orderliness had made it seem to him to be inappropriate to pursue her. So he never had. It appeared that that could quite possibly be the stupidest decision he had ever made.

"Like this?" she asked and he heard he shift her body on the couch. He started to turn expecting to see her stretched out on the length of it when her voice caught him, "Don't turn around Ebisu."

Ebisu kept his back straight but no longer quite so rigid. So it was a game and there were rules. Rules were good, he smiled thinking to himself.

"So? Like this?"

Ebisu hesitated, wondering what she wanted from him next. "No...not quite...your...um...legs were apart. One foot was on the floor and the other was on the arm of the couch."

He heard her shift again and the sound of her foot as she slipped it to the floor. Ebisu swallowed hard.

"Like this?" her voice was smoky and warm now.

"Yes," he mumbled, starting to turn once again but she stopped him with her voice once more.

"You're sure?"

Fuck. He would never forget her legs sprawled open like that and her hands... Wait a minute - did she want him to tell him where her hands had been too? And was she going to ...pose? Fuck.

"You're right," he answered her, "Your hands were...one hand was beneath your panties, between your legs. The other hand was..."

"Which one?" she cut him off.

Damn! Fuck. Fuck. Fuck. Remember Ebisu, he chided himself. It was ... her hand near the back of the sofa. Yes, that was it. If he had learned anything from Master Jiraiya it was observational skills. He answered her, "It was your left hand, you were lying so that your left arm was against the back of the sofa, right foot on the floor and your left hand was between your legs."

He heard her move slightly again and imagined her hand slipping down the flat of her belly beneath the waistband and between her legs, fingers sliding between her own wet folds.

"And where was my other h...."

This time it was Ebisu's turn to cut her off with his voice. "Shizune, unless you want to do more than just talk about it, I suggest you stop talking about it, now."

There was a long pause before she spoke and said "Well, what if I do want to do more than talk about it?"

He whirled around, lightning fast and was instantly by her side. Damn he was fast, Shizune thought once again. She lay there, posed as he remembered her and his gaze flicked up and down her body hungrily.

"If you want to do more than talk, I'm happy to oblige," he answered her, leaning forward to kiss her long and deep. Shizune started to hold him but his hands held both her wrists, keeping them positioned on her body.

"No. Stay the way I first saw you." Games were fun and rules were good, he thought to himself. Would Shizune be good at following the rules?

She was. Shizune remained still, her hands still in place while he kissed her. Ebisu kissed down her throat and nuzzled at her neck, then drew her right hand from under her shirt and placed it around his own shoulders. Nuzzling up under her t-shirt he captured one nipple in his teeth, tugging gently. Shizune moaned and clutched his shoulder. Continuing to lave the one nipple with his tongue, he reached under her shirt and rolled the other between his thumb and forefinger. Shizune squirmed beneath him and moaned his name loudly. "Oh, Ebisu!"

He chuckled and raised his head to whisper in her ear, "And that's what you were saying when I found you."

Shizune asked him, "And what did you want to do when you saw me and heard me?"

Ebisu tried to think of a polite way to tell her that he had wanted to fuck her like an animal. But actions speak louder than words. "This," was all he said. Shizune gasped as she felt the cool of the flat of a kunai against one hip. So fast! With a tug, he had cut the cloth at one hip, then reached to the other side and done the same there. Laying the kunai down he gently lifted the cloth away from her body and looked at her, seeing her slickened fingers dipping into her own folds, pink and glistening among the soft curls between her legs.

Ebisu rocked back on his heels and just looked at her. "Don't move," he said hoarsely. Shizune had to force herself to remain still while he undressed in front of her. She took in his form, lithe and muscular, cock jutting out proudly in front of him.

He leaned back over her and whispered in her ear, this time drawing both her hands around his shoulders. "Shizune," he said, "Shizune, since I saw you, I wanted you just like this. Just the way you were on the couch." With her hands holding him now, she drew in a shuddering sigh of pleasure as he slipped his own hand between her legs, his fingers stroking firmly into her slippery wetness, thumb circling around the little bundle of nerves that made her writhe in his arms.

He pushed her t-shirt up again and tongued her nipple a little more but quickly drew his face up to hers and kissed her roughly. "We can play more later," he growled. "I have got to have you now." He mounted her and in one swift thrust entered her so quickly she gasped out loud.

He forced himself to be still. Nearly incoherent with need, he managed to rasp out, "Shizune, I'm sorry, did I hurt you?"

"Noooo," she wailed, "Just move! You feel so damn good, just move!"

He laughed warmly in her ear, "With pleasure." And began to slam into her again and again. Shizune wrapped her arms around him and held on, trying to match his thrusts. She wanted to wrap her legs around him to but when she started to shift them he moved both his hands to her thighs, holding her position. "Shizune, just like I saw you."

Nearly pounding her senseless, Shizune savored every stroke. It was marvelous, Ebisu filling her, touching her deep inside, satisfying in a way her own fingers could never be. But when he slid one hand from her thigh and began toying with her clit with his fingers she thought she would lose her mind.

"Oh God!", she cried out. Her entire body was tense, poised on the brink of orgasm. And he just felt so damn good.

Ebisu felt her tension, felt her hands clutching desperately at his hips, seeking to keep him deep inside her. When he heard her, he roared his own release, spurting hot and deep within her.

The throbbing of his cock was all she needed to send her over the edge herself. She cried out his name over and over again and she came hard around him. Her heart was pounding but slowly returning to normal. She looked up at Ebisu and smiled. "That was fantastic," she said.

He kissed the top of her head, then sat up, repositioning them so that he was stretched out on the sofa, cradling her in his arms. Her head rested on his chest and she smiled hearing his heart beat racing as fast as hers.

"I don't guess I'll file a complaint about the schedule mix up, then," he said in a soft joking tone.

Shizune giggled, "Me either. I thought it was odd, that I'd be the last person they would need to proctor this portion of the exam, but when Jiraiya-sama told me that Anko couldn't make it..."

"Who told you?" Ebisu asked in a curious voice.

"Jiraiya-sama, why?"

"Oh, nothing," he smiled kissing her again. Ebisu wondered if he should tell his former sensei that for once, peeping had paid off.

_(AN: The preceding lemon was written by LovesRainScent. She deserves all of the credit for bringing the image of Ebisu and Shizune gettin' it on to life with her words. Thanks again LRS!! KW. For those who are confused about where this takes place in the storyline of this fic. This scene takes place at least two days after the shinobi meeting that starts this chapter. My next scene takes place at the same time as the events in this lemon. KW.)_

_**&&&&&&&&**_

Lady Tsunade, the Godaime Hokage of Konoha sat in the uncomfortable straight-backed chair that was the centerpiece of her office and cursed. Here she was days away from giving birth and her husband had somehow cajoled her into a little romantic candlelight dinner in the dim light of the Hokage's office when all she wanted to do was to lay down and go to sleep. Every few seconds, she wondered how that loveable pervert of a husband had gotten her to agree to this.

_**"Oh yeah, he promised me one of his Legendary Massages and since I'm addicted to those, I agreed without hesitation. Like a junkie being promised a free hit of the drug of her choice. In my case, it's those massages of his. Hmm, maybe I should list Jiraiya's massages as the most powerful narcotic in existence and make them quite illegal."**__, mused the fifty+ year old Hokage with a girlish giggle as she imagined the ramifications of such a decree from her. _

"At least, I can make the punishment so severe that no one would even think about breaking the law and I'll continue to receive his lustfully intoxicating massages.", Tsunade giggled greedily.

Tsunade let her mind get lost in daydreams of what could happen before a kick from a bored Jiraiya Junior brought her back to the present. Checking the clock, Tsunade decided to give her husband another five minutes to show up before she left. Idly glancing at the crystal ball that allowed her to see, hear, and know just about everything going on her village, Tsunade saw the perfect way to keep from brooding as she waited for Jiraiya. Concentrating the little bit of chakra she could spare, Tsunade activated the sphere and tasked its all-seeing eye to roam over the village at random so the five minutes left of her set time limit would go by quickly.

Three minutes into her observations, the Hokage's all seeing-eye fell upon the couch of the control room in the center of the Forest of Death and Tsunade lifted one of her delicately arched aquiline eyebrows at the sight of her assistant laying on the couch in nothing but panties (Rio-cut, not much coverage of Shizune's backside) and a tee shirt while playing with herself. Upon seeing the tableau in front of her, Tsunade muted the sound. During their years of traveling, there was one thing about her assistant that Tsunade had learned from the occasional tryst with Shizune during times of need (Even Tsunade needed 'stress relief' from time to time. A 'relief' Shizune often provided most enthusiastically when their plethora of 'toys' weren't any help). Her somewhat timid assistant could wake the dead with her cries of climax.

Tsunade did not need a screaming earache to go with the headache that was threatening to give the Hokage fits in addition to various sundry bruises Jiraiya junior was inflicting on her womb.

Unbeknownst to the Hokage, her husband had silently entered the room while Tsunade was glued to the crystal ball as her light brown eyes took in Shizune's nearly naked form out of the sexless clothes the jonin usually wore to hide her almost flawless body. Jiraiya had been in the office suppressing his chakra levels so Tsunade wouldn't detect him as he waited impatiently for her to activate the little sphere. Seeing the floundering entrance made by his number two protégé in perverted-ness, Jiraiya quietly chuckled as he mused that he'd made it right on time. Dropping his chakra suppression jutsu, Jiraiya watched as his wife whipped her head around in his direction with an embarrassed look on her face (though it was ruined by the lustful look he saw in her eyes).

"Ji...Ji…Jiraiya!!!", stammered Tsunade embarrassed that she'd been caught peeping on the pair of Jonin.

"See something you like, honey-bun?", questioned the Sage of Mount Myoukoubou.

Tsunade spluttered in exasperation as she tried to cut the flow of chakra to the crystal ball so that her world renown for his perverseness and sexually-explicit novels husband wouldn't be able to see what was going on only to be stopped by the gentle strength in his remaining hand as he halted her fumbling attempts and gently returned Tsunade to the chair she'd vacated when she'd first sensed him. Before she could protest again, those lusciously rough masculine lips descended down to lock on her own poutingly full lips and cut her off mid-splutter.

Tsunade's senses went into overdrive as they redlined in less than a nanosecond only to feel the coolness of the air as her husband teasingly pulled away and turned to the crystal ball. Following him with her eyes, Tsunade was at a loss for words as she felt herself lifted out of her seat for a moment. Even though she'd known about the strength in his remaining arm, Tsunade was still astonished as Jiraiya effortlessly lifted her up and deposited her across his broad and strong legs.

"Let's watch them for a little bit and see what happens. Shizune's been secretly loving Ebisu for quite sometime now. Of course, Ebisu is lot like Naruto and is naïve when it comes to being noticed by a woman. Kind of like how Naruto didn't realize that the Hyuuga Clan Head was in love with him all throughout their years in the academy and as genin.", stated Jiraiya calmly as he stuck his unlit pipe in his mouth and leaned back in Tsunade's chair.

_**"What the…. He's known about Shizune lusting after and loving Ebisu? And he didn't tell ME? He knows that I see Shizune as the daughter I never had and as the niece I lost when Dan was killed? I'm gonna ki….oh Kami his legs are so comfortable I don't wanna leave!", **__thought Tsunade as she snuggled a little deeper into the pocket created by Jiraiya's broad and firm chest._

Together, the two remaining Sannin sat observing their respective protégés as they reveled in their carnality and provided a running commentary as Shizune and Ebisu fully surrendered to their lusts and dreams in each others arms. Around the third hour of their entertainment, Tsunade grunted as a brief spike of pain hit. Over the past several hours, the Hokage had been feeling similar pains but had brushed them off since they weren't as bad.

This one, however, had Tsunade gritting her teeth to keep from yelling as she waited for the wave of pain to dissipate. Not thinking coherently at the moment, Tsunade demanded that Jiraiya give her a massage for making her wait so damn long before he arrived. Jiraiya snickered as he rose from his seat and headed out to get his massage lounge for his wife to lie on as gave her the massage she'd been wanting.

An hour into the most sinfully delectable massage Tsunade ever gotten, her pains came back with a vengeance. Lifting her head up from where it had rested on her arms (she'd kept watching Shizune and Ebisu make the beast with two backs during her treatment and felt her own libido starting to rise), Tsunade scoured the room to see where her husband was. Jiraiya wasn't presently in the room but she could hear him whistling a tune from his location in the office antechamber. Just as she was about to call him and demand he finish treating her like the queen she was, Tsunade felt a pain sharper than any other hit followed by a sudden dampness covering the front of her maternity outfit. At that instant, clarity struck Tsunade like a Rasengan with the full power of the nine tails.

_"JIRAIYA!!!! GET IN HERE NOW!!!",_ yelled Tsunade as she awkwardly climbed off of the comfortable lounge and immediately had her knees go out on her the minute her feet touched the ground.

Striking the ground with a loud thud, Tsunade wrapped one arm protectively around her bulging abdomen while using her remaining strength to pull herself to her feet. Hearing the sound of running feet, the Godaime Hokage turned to the source of the noise and was rewarded with the sight of Jiraiya rushing into the office to check on her. Seeing the look of horror on his face, Tsunade gave him a lovingly wan smile and reached out for her husband with her free hand. Her arm stretched halfway towards Jiraiya before her strength and willpower gave out and she started to collapse. Her husband caught her with his arm seconds before she would've hit the floor.

For his part, Jiraiya was panicking. He'd never seen his hime that pale in their entire life. Even when his darling Tsunade was so exhausted by a stressful day in the office and dropped her henge to reveal her true appearance; she'd kept the healthy tinge to the skin he loved so much to kiss and caress in their few minutes of intimate solitude. Right now, Tsunade looked paler than the palest Hyuuga. Jiraiya looked down at Tsunade as she allowed her body to go limp and saw her mouth move as if she was trying to say something. Leaning closer to hear what his wife was trying to say, Jiraiya focused a small amount of chakra to his ear.

"Jiraiya-koi……..take me to the hospital. Junior wants to see his mommy…..help me summon Katsuu.", breathed Tsunade instinctively.

Jiraiya frowned at the request but did as she asked. Covering her small hand with his large one, the Toad Sannin focused a bit of his chakra and forced it through his wife's tenketsu. Once that was done, Jiraiya used his thumbnail to pierce Tsunade's skin, all the while hating the marring of her beautiful skin. Seeing the trickle of blood leaking out of the puncture he'd made, Jiraiya helped Tsunade with the handsigns needed for summoning.

"KUCHIYOSE NO JUTSU!!!", shouted the Hokage in the loudest voice she could manage.

A puff of thick white smoke appeared and when it had vanished, one could see an enormous slug standing before the pair.

She was Lady Katsuu. The chief summon of the slug clan.

Katsuu looked at the tableau before her and paled; her shimmering blue-white skin fading to a brilliant white. Her Mistress' pregnancy was in dire straights. Figuring out what was needed Katsuu turned her attention to the white-haired man her mistress had married.

"Master Jiraiya, what is wrong with Mistress Tsunade?", asked Katsuu in her soft voice.

"Lady Katsuu, your mistress has gone into labor! I need to get her to the hospital fast. I need you to send some of your offspring ahead to clear the way for us. Once the way is clear, I need you and your clan members to secrete me sort of slippery fluid on the ground. Once that is done send one of your children to let me know. I'm gonna summon the Chief Toad and carry Tsunade to the hospital.", Jiraiya hurriedly stated as he scrambled around the office for the duffle bag full of Tsunade's necessities so that his hime could be comfortable.

Before Katsuu could reply, she heard Tsunade tell her to do what Jiraiya said. The Hokage also asked that once she was secured in the hospital could Katsuu send another of her children to fetch Shizune from the Forest of Death Control Room. Katsuu bowed in acknowledgement and started to spawn smaller versions of her self and several of her children to the living world. Once they were there, Katsuu gave them their orders and dispelled herself only to reappear on the street below and started to methodically slime the way away from the office. When Jiraiya was sure that Lady Katsuu was far enough away he bit his thumb and slammed his hand down on the ground while focusing all of his chakra into the summoning.

The few people out were astonished when a large cloud of smoke appeared only to dissipate and reveal a ten-story toad with a long and elegant pipe in his mouth. The deck of cards in the toad's webbed foot explained why Gamabunta, the chief toad, wasn't happy.

He'd been about to win a poker hand with a royal flush.

_"JIR-RAI-YA!!! WHERE ARE YOU!! YOU DIRTY BASTARD, SUMMONING NOW WHEN I WAS JUST ABOUT TO BEAT THE HEAD OF THE SNAKE SUMMON CLAN!!!",_ roared Gamabunta.

"Stifle it you hopping suitcase. We got a problem and I need your help.", snapped Jiraiya as he helped a wincing and groaning Tsunade to the balcony.

The chief toad lowered his head to the balcony and spotted the couple waiting. Unconsciously, he blew a thin stream of smoke from his pipe right into their faces.

"Come here you overgrown travel bag!! If you ever blow smoke in my face again, I'm gonna cut off your legs and eat em'! Now get down here and help me climb up and you better have a nice place for me to sit!!!", growled Tsunade as she coughed into Jiraiya's shoulder.

Gamabunta had heard tales about the woman whose legendary strength allowed her the ability to summon Lady Katsuu (plus he'd already heard all of the pervert's lewd stories about his Tsunade-hime). Learning from his master that Lady Tsunade was one to hold a grudge and follow up on a threat, Gamabunta lowered his head just enough for Tsunade and Jiraiya to climb on to his back. Telling them to hold on to the collar of his robe, Gamabunta turned towards the hospital and saw the slimy path on the ground in front of him and realized what exactly Jiraiya wanted him to do.

"Jiraiya, are you sure about this? Last time we did this you ended up with several broken ribs. Not to mention what happened to the blonde brat.", grumbled the toad in his deep basso profundo voice.

"Now is _**NOT THE TIME **_to be discussing this Bunta'. Just remember to thank Katsuu for her help when this is all over.", growled Jiraiya impatiently as he made sure his wife was secured in his arm and protected by the jutsu that made his hair longer and sharper.

Gamabunta shrugged and told them to hold on before using his powerful hind legs to propel him onto the slick street.

On his back, Tsunade looked up at her husband and asked him why he had summoned the chief toad.

"Three reasons hime. First, no disrespect intended to the chief slug but Lady Katsuu is slow. Secondly, Though Katsuu is slow, everyone respects her enough and knows that she is your chief summon. Anything she says is acted on as if it came from you."

"And the third reason?", groaned Tsunade as another labor pain hit.

Jiraiya glanced down at Tsunade and she was able to see the teasing grin on his face that both infuriated her and made her lust after him even more.

"The third reason; that should be obvious hime, I've always wanted you to go Toad Surfing with me.", chuckled Jiraiya.

Tsunade heard his reply but for the life of her (she had other more pressing things on her mind at the moment) she'd never heard of Toad Surfing. And that is when Gamabunta landed on Katsuu's trail of slime.

Jiraiya whooped in exhilaration as the impetus of Gamabunta's leap propelled them down the slick roadway at insane speeds. Unfortunately, Tsunade's inner ear protested the sensation by giving her an awful case of the leans that developed into a full blown case of vertigo as their speed increased. Tsunade's reaction to her wildly tumbling senses was textbook:

The Godaime Hokage, Lady Tsunade puked all over her husband just as they reached the hospital, much to his mortification and Gamabunta's delight if the shuddering of the giant toads' shoulder was any sign.

Not soon enough, the rough slide ride came to a sudden halt as Gamabunta reached the end of the slime trail and-now a bit more cognizant of Lady Tsunade's condition-gave a short hop and landed on the slime-free ground in front of the entrance to Konoha General Hospital. Thanking his old friend profusely, Jiraiya slid off of Gamabunta with Tsunade riding piggyback and dashed into the hospital. Gamabunta grunted before casting about for a plot of grass to scrub his webbed feet free of the slime. Lady Katsuu gazed at her fellow chief summons with a frown and shook her head.

"Bunta, have all of your summoners been that irresponsible?" asked the ten-story giant slug.

"Oh go slime on somebody else's' day, Katsuu. I'm not in the mood for any of your dry jokes today!", cursed the chief toad as he continued to scrub his feet.

Katsuu chuckled before sending one of her newer daughters off to the Forest of Death to retrieve her mistresses' assistant. Bunta heard the chuckle and let it pass. Finished with his scrubbing, the boss toad summoned his son Gamatatsu.

"Yes Oh Great Boss Toad, you have summoned me?", questioned the yellow and blue toad (who always seemed high on something according to his father) who appeared next to the pair of chief summons.

"Gamatatsu since you know your way around here pretty well I need you to go to Naruto's place and bring him here. Tell him that his obaachan is in the hospital. Then get outta the way!", grunted Gamabunta as he relit his pipe from a handy torch provided by one of Lady Katsuu's children.

"I live to serve and obey my most magnificent leader of the Toad Summon clan.", replied the smaller toad before vanishing to perform his deeds.

Gamabunta glanced over at Katsuu and grimaced as he recognized her way of laughing when she observed something funny.

_**"Those slugs are cool and all but damn, they have a dry sense of humor."**__, mused Gamabunta as he sat back on his haunches and enjoyed the relaxing smoke from his pipe. _

_**&&&&&&&&&&**_

Inside Konoha General Hospital, Jonin Maito Gai leaned against the nurses' desk as he flirted with the pretty nurse on duty. Gai had been on night patrol with some of the police force and had stopped by the hospital to check on the shinobi enjoying a forced respite due to injuries sustained in any number of skirmishes. He'd just autographed a poster he'd done some modeling for awhile back for the nurse on duty when Master Jiraiya came speeding in carrying his wife on his back.

Jiraiya skidded to a stop when he saw the Green Beast of Konoha flashing his infamous smile at the duty nurse (who'd just about shit a ton of bricks when she saw who was on the Toad Sage's back). Glaring at the jonin while mentally cursing himself out for interrupting what promised to be an educational experience, Jiraiya ordered Gai to get a platoon of ANBU Black Ops to surround the hospital and protect it while not being seen. Gai acknowledged the order and sprinted off as Jiraiya assisted the nurse in getting Tsunade into a wheelchair so she could be admitted to the delivery room.

Within three minutes, the speedy Jonin was back with the ANBU platoon commander and reporting to a worried Jiraiya that the requested ops were in place around the hospital to protect those within. Jiraiya told the ANBU Lieutenant in the ferret mask that Gai was in charge for the duration of this assignment and all future reports are given to him.

"As ordered Master Jiraiya; the ANBU Black Ops Thirteenth Platoon will do our duty and protect everyone here. The Thirteenth also congratulates you and Lady Hokage on the imminent birth. We'll protect the inhabitants of this location or die trying Lord Jiraiya.", quoted the shinobi with a salute before using a shunshin to report to his position.

Jiraiya nodded absently as he bit his fingernail. Lost in thought, he didn't notice when Gai stepped by his side and told him not to worry about Lady Tsunade in a low voice.

"Thank you very much Gai, Tsunade and myself appreciate their and your devotion to duty. Lady Shizune should be here shortly. Escort her straight to the hokage's room and make sure nobody gives her any guff. If they do, you have my permission to beat the youthfulness back into them.", stated Jiraiya as he turned to face the Jonin.

Gai's eyes lit up with glee and Jiraiya hoped that whomever gave the over exuberant jonin any problems was granted the sweet release of rapid unconsciousness rather than having to remain awake as Gai gave his infernal speech on 'The Spirit of Youth'. Gai started to step away to wait for Shizune when Jiraiya called him back.

"One last thing Gai, it's better to get the girl home where she can cream your sheets in private instead of creaming her panties in public. You need to work on that. Here's a little thing to help you with that.", Jiraiya muttered to Gai in a low voice while handing him one of his Icha Icha Techniques books.

Now Maito Gai wasn't a prude. In fact, the jonin had had several intimate relationships with members of the opposite sex, yet for the world renowned author to hand over such a thing caught Gai by surprise and his face turned fire-engine red as he blushed fifty shades of crimson at the implications of Lord Jiraiya's words.

_**&&&&&&&&**_

It was ten o'clock AM in Konohagakure and the citizens of our fair village were going about their business. Civilians were strolling about hither and yon. Shinobi were leaving on missions, returning from missions, training for more missions, or just kicking back and relaxing. Other shinobi were making preparations for the Chuunin exam scheduled to start that very day by escorting teams of genin from other villages and their jonin sensei's through the city to their lodgings. Konoha's ANBU Black Ops and Root Divisions were keeping covert watch on those shinobi and kunoichi from hidden villages not on good terms with Konoha. The entrants from the Hidden Sound Village were watched especially close since none of the Konoha Shinobi Corps knew where the present leader of the Hidden Sound Village (and Konoha genin-ranked missing-nin) Sasuke Uchiha was. Rumors overheard from the Sound Jonin instructors mentioned that the Uchiha had gotten his ass handed to him in a fight a month or so previous and was recovering at one of the numerous outposts Hidden Sound had.

Of course when the reports of these rumors made it back to ANBU and Root Headquarters, there was much joviality. Even the almost emotionless head of Root, Sai (Danzou had died in a 'mysterious' accident soon after Lady Tsunade and Master Jiraiya were married and had gone on their long-delayed honeymoon. It was mentioned that somehow the Nine-tails escaped from its seal and wreaked havoc in Root Headquarters where for some odd reason Danzou was there without his personally picked security team. Sai wasn't speaking on the subject and neither was Naruto) had a laugh at the misfortune that had befallen the Uchiha traitor.

Everyone was going about their business when the loudspeaker for the village's public address system flipped on. Now this wasn't unusual since the system was used several times a day for different announcements for the public as well being used whenever the village was threatened as an Emergency Broadcast System so the civilians and retired shinobi could know when they needed to evacuate a particular district. However, the populace wasn't expecting to hear Master Jiraiya's voice in place of the voice of the usual announcer.

"Is this damn thing on? Gamakichi, keep that idiot announcer away from the power panel! Oh the system _**IS**_ on. Well shit, the whole village just heard me. Ahh what the hell! I was trying to turn it on anyway. Ladies and Gentlemen of Konoha, the Village Hidden in the Leaves; I, Master Jiraiya, have some good news, some better news, and some totally awesome great news!", shouted Jiraiya into the microphone (not realizing that Gamakichi had accidentally knocked the volume up to max blast with the ill-advised placement of a webbed foot).

Those listening had to wince as Jiraiya's words blew through the speakers scattered around the village at the volume specially reserved for evacuation announcements. Of course the Icha Master didn't realize it and took a deep breath. To the citizens around the village, Jiraiya's inhalation sounded like the vacuum of death.

"As many of you have already heard if the rumor mill around Konoha is as fast as it was when I was a genin; my wife, Lady Tsunade Senju, the Godaime Hokage was rushed to Konoha General Hospital by way of Giant Toad Express early this morning. The Hokage is doing fine and resting comfortably. That's the good news! The better news is that at 8:32 AM the Godaime Hokage gave birth to our first child, a baby boy: Hiruzen Nawaki Senju! Now if you think that is better than the good news, you're right!!! But the totally fricken awesome great news is that at 9:05 AM, my lovely wife delivered a very early birthday gift to little Hiruzen in the form of his sister Kurumi Senju!!! Tsunade, Hiruzen, and Kurumi are all fine. Kurumi has her mother's strong voice and my eyes. Hiruzen has eyes that are a deeper shade of brown than those of our precious Hokage!"

Outside the hospital, Konoha was in an ecstatic uproar. Villagers, shinobi and civilian alike, were dancing in the streets, cheering till there eyes were full of tears and their voices hoarse. Several pubs started serving free drinks to everybody. Konoha's adult bookstore closed down and the owners nearly wept while their competitors from Konoha's Children's Bookstore three shops up the road threw a massive party and made immediate plans to start work on a section of shelves specifically for the children's books written by the world renown author they were sure he would start writing.

(Though not many people knew it, Jiraiya had ghost-written one book for children. He'd lost a bet with Tsunade and together the couple co-wrote the book soon after Tsunade's pregnancy had been quietly confirmed).

Back at the hospital, two extremely powerful fireworks (one pink, one blue) had rocketed into the sky to share the news of the birth of the Hokage's children with Konoha Villagers who weren't any where near one of the speakers for the announcing system.

In a quiet and private hospital room, an exhausted Tsunade leaned back against the brace of pillows and sighed in happiness as she ran a gentle fingertip over the features of a suckling Kurumi. Hearing the mellow baritone of her husband as he broke into song, Tsunade glanced out the window and observed the gathering crowd of her villagers as they congregated outside the hospital beyond a cordon of the special unit of ANBU Black Ops the Hokage had formed two days ago under the command of Yoshino Nara. The Fifth Fire Shadow shifted her gaze from the window of the hospital's specially protected wing and glanced around her room at those gathered therein.

Standing next to Tsunade's bed was her assistant and closest friend sporting a dull blush and wearing a hospital robe (when Katsuu's daughter had found her, Shizune was playing 'Bad Nurse, Horny Doctor' with Ebisu and had to hurriedly put on the robe she'd just slipped out of in order to make it to the hospital without giving everyone a show). Sakura was next to Shizune taking notes on Shizune's observations, or trying to. Konoha's Merciful Cherry Blossom was spending more time casting looks at her blonde teammate as he gently held little Hiruzen while sitting in the room's sole rocking chair. Sakura remembered how Naruto had been the first among the rest of the Konoha Eleven to see her daughter Satsuki after she'd given birth.

Naruto was cooing at the sleeping boy he held in his arms (correctly-much to the amazement of Tsunade and Shizune) as he slowly rocked the chair back and forth. One could see that the Golden Whirlwind was exhausted but they knew that there was nothing that was gonna keep him from being there as his nephew and niece were born. Indeed, he had used his version of the Hirashin to arrive at the hospital seconds before Shizune did. Glancing up at the speaker over his head (which had been turned down the minute Jiraiya started speaking), Naruto chuckled as he heard his Sensei sing a line from Usher's song 'Appetite'.

"Ero-sennin sure does know how to sing. And he picked a good song even if the premise of the song is a bit skewered in his eyes. He sure does 'Love His Ladies', baachan.", exclaimed Naruto quietly.

"At least it's not 'Moving Mountains' like he sang at our reception. I still wonder how Jiraiya, of all people, managed to get all of my male shinobi to come onto the dance floor and sing that song. Although the line about him 'standing in gas and me being his flame' did make me cry for a bit.", replied the Hokage as she mimed wiping a tear out of her eye.

"Shishou, I think that line got all of the women of the village and Kunoichi crying. I heard that after the reception, Kakashi corned Anko in one of the classrooms and sang to her. By the way, Lady Tsunade, at your wedding I noticed you were wearing a pair of diamond encrusted garters. Yet when Jiraiya threw the garter at the reception, it was a regular silk one?", asked Sakura as she went back to her notes after a concerned glare from Shizune.

"Sakura, do you think I was going to allow that buffoon to toss the garters he designed and had made specifically for me to a bunch of slobbering men? Ya gotta be kidding me! Those garters are put away in a special place. Well one of them is.", answered Tsunade with a blush.

"And before you ask, she was wearing the other one when she was admitted last night.", Shizune cut in as she saw Naruto open his mouth in preparation for asking a question.

Before the blonde could reply to that, a gust of wind blew in and Jiraiya appeared in all of his sagely glory. Tsunade cut her eyes to Shizune and one could see the smirk forming on her face. She still had to punish her husband for his tardiness last night. Shizune nodded and subtly moved away from the bed.

"Jiraiya-pudding cup, come here for a moment. I have two things I want to ask. Well, one thing I want to ask and one thing I want to tell you. First off, why did you set up the….activity last night?"

"Because Hokage-koi, I noticed Shizune's apparent attraction to Ebisu a few months back and wanted to get them together. I felt that since you married me, an admitted super-pervert and Anko married Kakashi (both of them are perverts in their own right), why not get Shizune together with her own pervert; and from what we witnessed last night, it was a good idea. Besides you know you women go crazy for us perverts!", replied Jiraiya with a grin.

Tsunade nodded at his reasoning while Shizune spluttered her embarrassed indignation. Sakura and Naruto, though understanding the conversation on one level, completely missed the subtext and stared confusedly at each other.

"One last thing loving husband of mind, I'm appointing you as acting Hokage for the Chuunin Exams. I had planned on letting Shizune perform those duties but she's my post-natal doctor and can't do both jobs. Sakura can't do it because she's temporarily assuming Shizune's position as head doctor. Naruto can't do it because his team is in the exam. So out of those that I can trust, you're the only one experienced enough to handle it. Ahh, here comes Koharu and Homura to make it official.", mused Tsunade with an evil glint in her eyes as a knock was heard at the door.

Sakura answered the door and stepped back as the two elders of the council entered with the stately grace reserved for those venerated ones whose advanced age allowed it. The steel grey elder kunoichi cast a warm glance at her late teammate's pupil that caused Tsunade some concern and a twinge of anger for some odd reason. It was as if Koharu knew something about her husband that Tsunade didn't know. And that made her jealous. Her jealousy was forgotten as she felt a breeze on her nipple and looked down to see that her daughter had pulled away from her meal. Passing Kurumi to her father, Tsunade closed up her tunic and pulled the blankets up. She watched as Koharu and Homura draped the specially made acting Hokage's cloak over the stunned Jiraiya while his student took a picture. Once the announcement was made over the P.A. system about Jiraiya's temporary assignment, Shizune and Sakura threw everybody out of Tsunade's room and placed the sleeping twins in the two incubator beds brought into the room. Once that was done, Sakura excused herself and left Tsunade and Shizune alone. Shizune closed the blinds as her adopted aunt nestled down into the warm blankets and immediately drifted off to sleep.

_**&&&&&&&&&**_

Outside of the gates of Konoha, two shinobi waited. One was a fourteen year old boy with dark skin and brown hair. He wore the shinobi outfit indigenous to his village; a one piece, tiger-striped jungle camouflage outfit and a pair of soft moccasin closed-toe shinobi boots. Next to him was his sensei, a kunoichi of immense skill and a forgotten legend.

The kunoichi stood five foot eleven and a half inches tall, was slender yet full-figured in the way that some kunoichi were and had light hazel eyes. Her long starlight purple hair was done in a simple ponytail that draped over her shoulder in a relaxed way. On her dainty feet, the kunoichi wore a pair of heeled black moccasins made from the skin of a dark colored bull. Taking a deep breath, the kunoichi looked around with a sense of familiarity. Spotting the face added to Hokage Mountain, she snorted her amusement.

"So, Sensei-Iron Tits made Hokage. I wasn't expecting that. Although it does suit her better than it suited either of her teammates; Rochi was a bastard. I'm happy he's dead. I just thank Kami for all Konoha Kunoichi that Jiraiya wasn't appointed Hokage. He would've had the uniform for all kunoichi changed into something perverted. Hmm, I wonder how my old friend Royokan and my son are doing?", mused the woman as she and her charge waited for their two teammates to join them before entering the village she'd been a part of for several years before receiving her assignment from the Yondaime Hokage, over twenty years ago.

"Saiga-sensei? How much longer do we have to wait? Chiara and Horus are taking too long.", asked the boy from his perch in the tree his Jonin Sensei leaned against.

Saiga didn't answer her student. She just turned and indicated a direction where a cloud of dust was being kicked up. She'd sensed her other two genin and their senseis' a short while before and knew they were on the way. When the foursome arrived, they slid to a stop in front of the imposing woman.

"Zaiden, get down. Your teammates are here."

"Yes ma'am!", answered the boy as he lithely jumped out of the tree and landed next to the fourteen year old girl with dark blue hair and tribal markings on her face and the other fourteen year old boy with short green hair. Together the trio of genin waited for their sensei to speak.

Saiga looked at her three students for the exam and her two assistants with an impossible to interpret gaze. She put her hands on her hips and began to speak.

"As the five of you know, we're here to enter a team into the Chuunin Exams. Even though according to our village you're jonin, members of your age group from the five Great Shinobi Nations are considered genin or Chuunin depending on whether they've participated in the exam and passed. This quarter's Chuunin Exam is being held in the village of our longest ally Konohagakure; the Village Hidden in the Leaves. A few months back one of our messengers sent Lady Hokage a request for one of our teams to be entered in the Chuunin Exam. Lady Tsunade agreed and sent the applications and paperwork needed to travel to Konoha without being attacked. Zaiden, Chiara, Horus, you three are our team. Ever since you graduated from the Hidden Jungle Village Academy for Shinobi and Kunoichi and were sent on your Chuunin exam to find us three, you've been the most reported on ninja from our village. It was decided that since Konoha and the other four nations put their newly graduated genin into teams of three with a jonin sensei instead of sending them off to find their sole sensei like our village and train independently as one student, one sensei, our village chief decided to assign Horus and Chiara to a team with Zaiden and me forming the traditional one jonin-three genin four man teams with the sensei's of Horus and Chiara becoming my assistants. Once we enter this village, I want the five of you to be on your best behavior. I also want you to adhere to the rule of not mentioning the name of our village and just referring to it as the 'Unnamed Hidden Village'. To end this lecture, upon entering the village, I want the five of you to find our lodgings and get settled in. With the Hokage giving birth today, I expect the exam will be postponed by one day. I have to visit an old friend of mine and see if he still has what I left him. That is all.", stated Saiga as she dismissed her team before turning towards the gate and extracting the sheet of parchment with their invitations on it to have ready when they entered the gates.

With her head held high, Saiga Hatake strode determinedly through the gates of her former village.

_**&&&&&&&&&**_

Over at the compound of the Inuzuka Clan; Royokan Inuzuka, the head of the clan, caught his breath as he jogged around the compound with his familiar, a dire wolf named Cujo, beside him. Standing six foot, six inches tall; Royokan towered over his wife Tsume Inuzuka and daughter Hana while being two inches taller than his twenty-year old son Kiba.

The forty-nine year old man narrowed his eyes as he remembered his daughters halting confession after he caught Hana and her lover Iruka canoodling in a shinobi bar he occasionally frequented when he was in Konoha proper during his month of downtime after being a renowned tracker-nin on Konoha's far border with the Unnamed Hidden Village during his long assignment. Usually he was only home once every so often depending on the situation. This time he was home for good and ready to take assignment as a jonin sensei while his son replaced him in the border guard.

Surveying the compound with the eyes of a wolf as the clan recuperated after celebrating his return and the betrothal of Hana to Iruka (a particularly brutal procedure whereas the academy instructor had to fight several of the clans' male members as well as Royokan to prove his ability to protect the Jewel of the Inuzuka), the clan head stiffened as his sensitive nose caught the faint smell of a familiar scent. Recognizing the scent as the one of his old ANBU Black Ops cell commander, the only person to hold the highest ANBU rank of general, Royokan panicked. If the smell he was scenting belonged to who he thought it belonged to then he was in a world of trouble.

"Cujo, go wake up Hana, Kiba, and Iruka; tell Hana and Kiba to put on their best clothes and have Kiba go into my office and retrieve the elegant scroll sitting on the windowsill and the sheathed sword next to it. I'll get Tsume and start my explanation. Impress upon Hana and Kiba that the guest we are about to have is not one to anger. Have Hana tell Iruka that he needs to disappear for a short bit.", breathed Royokan as he sprinted towards the main house.

The slender dire wolf barked its acknowledgment of his orders and sprinted off. Within minutes the sounds of an aggravated Kiba could be heard echoing throughout the compound. Minutes later, Royokan was out of breath and sitting in the formal living room awaiting the one he knew as the general. Next to him knelt a harried looking Tsume. Even though she'd managed to slip into her formal robes and tame her hair into a semblance of orderliness, to Royokan's eyes, she was perfect. He cast a glance at his beloved and offered her an apologetic smile. She returned it with an understanding nod of her own.

Behind Royokan knelt his daughter, daughter-in-law, son, and future son-in-law (who agued that if he was going to be a part of this family it'd be best if he were to appear by Hana's side. Kiba had protested but Royokan had grunted his assent). The main members of the Inuzuka Clan sat quietly and that was how Saiga found them when she was conducted into the room by an Inuzuka cousin. Kneeling in front of her subordinate, Saiga saw that the Inuzuka children had grown up and were either married or betrothed. Seeing Royokan wave a hand, Saiga lifted her head and gazed demurely at the younger man.

"Hello Lord Inuzuka. It has been a long time since we last spoke, hasn't it?"

"Yes General Saiga. It has. I am grateful for you and your team rescuing us during that fight with those hostile to your village. My wife and family thank you as much. If it wasn't for you, I wouldn't be here today."

"I see. Well, I am just returning the favor you gave me when our group attacked and defeated the Sound Shinobi who were attacking my village as a diversionary tactic during the Chuunin Exams all those years ago. Are any of our comrades still alive?"

"No milady. You and I are all that remains of Konoha's Claws and Fangs. As you know the Emerald Claw died soon after the White Fang while the Blue Fang and the Purple Claw were killed when my son was three. That leaves just you 'The Scarlet Claw', and me 'The Jade Fang' as the only ones left."

Saiga bowed her head as she remembered the ache of losing her partner Sugumo Hatake, Konoha's White Fang. Royokan and the rest of the family gave the woman a small amount of time to grieve before returning to the business at hand. Saiga looked up as Royokan passed a sealing scroll across the table. Recognizing it for what it was, she accepted the scroll and placed it in one of the pockets of her vest.

"I hear that my son married a few years back and his wife gave birth to twins. I'll go visit them after I leave here.", stated Saiga.

"That is understandable. But be forewarned, his wife is one of the most aggressive women out there and a jonin in her own right considering who her sensei was."

Royokan lifted an eyebrow when he heard Saiga give a laugh. He knew who her son was and who he was married to. He also knew that if her daughter-in-law got to uppity, the general would show her the error of her ways very quickly.

"If she has a bad temper like my old jonin sensei Iron-Fist, it'll be interesting. Oh by the way, I see that my sensei gave birth today. I'll drop in and give her my congratulations a little later. Thank you for watching over my sword and cloak, Royokan I'm extremely grateful."

"It's no problem general. I remember all the times when the Claws and Fangs of Konoha were there to protect our village. My eternal thanks go to you for all the things that you did to help me adapt to the other five when I was the Jade Fang of Konoha. Is there something that brings you back here?", asked Royokan.

"Yes, two things. First, I have a team of genin from the Hidden Unnamed Village entered in the exam. Secondly, it's time to renegotiate and confirm the Treaty of Alliance with Konoha. Once those things are done, I plan to retire and be a grandmother to my grandchildren. I humbly request that I take my leave of you and your family. I've imposed to much of my time on you and your family.", stated Saiga as she bowed deeply.

Royokan nodded his assent at her request and watched as the older woman rose to her feet and gracefully turned around and departed like an elegant cruise ship in the night. Closing his eyes and remembering times long past, the elder Inuzuka turned to face his son and saw the question he'd wanted to ask but decorum prevented him from asking. Nodding at Kiba, Royokan gave his son permission to speak.

"Father, who was that woman? And who were the Fangs and Claws of Konoha?", asked the curious jonin.

"Kiba, that woman was one of the deadliest kunoichi of her time. She was so deadly, she makes Anko look like a first grader. To answer your second question, Konoha's Fangs and Claws were a team of six shinobi; three men and three women, who specialized in numerous assassination jutsus, fighting styles, techniques, and the like. Each member was given a name so classified that if the Sandaime or the Yondaime had been alive today, she would've immediately been executed for her transgression. When I joined, shortly after I met your mother, I was given the name 'Jade Fang' and partnered with a woman named 'Emerald Claw'. My partner and I replaced the previous fang and claw who'd been killed in the Third Shinobi War while on a top secret assignment. They completed their mission but were bushwhacked on their way back to Konoha. That woman, her husband, and I went out to retrieve their bodies and killed some shinobi who were trying to autopsy the bodies. We did what we were supposed to do to keep the secrets of the Claws and Fangs of Konoha from being found out. Years ago when Hana was little, she asked about a tattoo I had on my shoulder. Hana, do you remember what I told you back then? I told you that you had to wait until you were older. Well now you are older so I can tell you. That tattoo is the marking of the Fangs and Claws. It was used to cover up a serious wound I was given upon my joining that elite group. Lady Saiga personally made that cut with her sword. That is enough for now Hana, Kiba. There are still some things I can't tell you. I can reveal them to your mother but unless Lady Saiga unseals a certain scroll, no one will know about the Claws and Fangs of Konoha.", replied Royokan with a pensive look on his face that Tsume knew all to well.

_**"Hopefully, Lady Saiga won't ask Lady Hokage to reform that elite group of shinobi. Royokan revealed more to me in our room than he revealed to our son. I know the hell he went through as Konoha's Jade Fang. After all the missions, he came back to me, to us. Please Lady Saiga, please let that hideous group stay dead.", **__thought Tsume as she observed her husband lapse into his long buried memories._

_**&&&&&&&&&&&**_

Anko Mitarashi-Hatake watched as her husband slept on their couch with Rin resting on his strong chest. Kakashi had been exhausted for the past few days due to training and helping around the house. With her son secure in the sling over her shoulder and wearing a simple house dress, Anko looked every inch the successful house wife.

Wonder of wonders, Anko had been cleaning up the kitchen for some odd reason and had just finished. Leaning against her broom, the smiling mistress of death had a normal smile on her face as she observed father and daughter catching some snooze time. Lifting her head from where Rin and Kakashi lay, Anko spotted the hole in the wall made by Rin when she got a hold of one of Anko's kunai knives out of her pouch and had unconsciously charged it with chakra before giving it a toddler's toss as her father had walked through the door. Anko's heart had leapt up into her throat as the flash of white flew past her face. Only her husband's skill had allowed him to evade the kunai knife.

Up until that time, Anko had never seen Kakashi angry. After that incident, she hoped never to see him that angry again. Kakashi had read her the riot act fifty-two ways from Sunday and had cowed Anko into a state of slight despair due to her carelessness.

Anko giggled as she remembered that Kakashi had apologized in his special way after he'd calmed down a bit. Of course Anko took every bit of advantage from his apology and had finally released him from her sensual clutches the morning of the meeting two days ago. Deciding to finish up the housework later when her children were in bed and she had an able 'assistant', Anko put her broom up and was in the process of bringing the sling that held Sugumo around to her front so that she could join her husband and daughter on the couch when there was a knock at the door.

"Oh fer the love of dango!!! I was just getting ready to take a nap with my husband and kids. Of course there would be a knock at the door. It better be Kurenai or one of my other friends. If word got out that I liked being domestic around the house, my reputation would suffer.", grumbled Anko as she stormed to the door.

Putting on her best 'don't fuck with me now' scowl, Anko slung the door open. Standing outside the door with an amused smile on her face was an unknown older woman wearing some sort of shinobi uniform. Only this uniform was unlike any Anko had seen anywhere. It consisted of a halter top, calf-length pants, and a pair of the cutest heeled soft boots Anko had ever seen (see, Anko has a feminine side. She loves boots!). The woman was carrying a sealed scroll and had a short sword sheathed in a standard ANBU Black Ops sheath. Hoping her scowl was dong its job, Anko brusquely asked the woman what in the hell did she want.

Saiga chuckled in appreciation at the woman in front of her. So this was her daughter-in-law. At least she had a fighting spirit that approached Saiga's own. Hearing the woman repeat her rude question, Saiga decided to have some fun.

"I like you spirit, young one. But no matter how good you think you are. I'll always be better. The copycat ninja made a good choice when he chose you. I approve. Now move it tiny, I'd like to see my son.", snapped Saiga in response to Anko's question.

There was a moment of silence as Anko realized what the rude woman had said. Then she reacted and did the first thing that came to her. It was very nearly the last thing she did.

If Saiga had been fishing for a reaction, she got it as the purple haired woman stiffened and struck without warning, or tried to. Saiga saw the move as it developed and avoided the fist coming towards her face at a respectable speed. Parrying it with her empty hand, Saiga drew her short sword and placed the sharp tip along the underside of Anko's throat. Anko gulped and feared what could have happened if this strange woman had continued with her thrust.

"Now as I've already said, I like your style. Can I see my son now?"

"Your son, who is your son?", asked Anko with baited breath as the sword rested against her neck.

"Tsk, tsk, tsk. You married him. My son is Kakashi Hatake. My name, dear girl, is Saiga. Saiga Hatake."

_**&&&&&&&&&&&**_

It was the preliminaries to the final round of the delayed Konoha Chuunin Exams and fourteen-year old Hanabi Hyuuga was watching her teammate and cousin Chitose fight her match against one of the three Genin from the Hidden Unnamed Village. Unfortunately, Chitose wasn't doing well. The member of the Hyuuga Branch Clan was bruised and breathing heavily. Hanabi could see that even though her cousin had her Byakugan active, Chitose was fast running out of the necessary chakra to sustain the vaunted Kekkei Genkai of the Hyuuga. Turning to her other teammate, Junichi Iketani, Hanabi commented on her cousin and the match.

"Her Byakugan is about to shut off. She's used it for too long and has got to be way low on chakra. "

"I'm more worried about her opponent. He hasn't been exerting himself as much as Chitose has. Hell, since that pair of attacks he used earlier, he's been evading every attack Chitose could throw at him. Granted, she's restricted herself to your families Jyuken style so as not to reveal her true capabilities.", replied Junichi as he wiped some of the sweat off of his forehead from his victory two matches previous.

Hanabi nodded as she continued to observe the match. She'd already advanced to the final round after her victory in the first preliminary match against one of the Genins from Suna. Leaning against the railing surrounding the arena in the Forest of Death Tower, Hanabi hoped that Chitose would win the match. However, if her cousin lost, Hanabi looked forward to facing the boy who beat the Branch Clan's Kunoichi Prodigy.

Down in the midst of the arena, Chitose Hyuuga was oblivious to the ruminations of her cousin. The young woman was mentally trying to come up with a strategy that would allow her to finally beat this upstart who'd had the balls to insult her family. She remembered his words at the start of the match and felt the fire from then reignited. Settling into her stance again, Chitose watched her opponent with hooded eyes.

"_**Third-rate clan, fourth-rate fighting-style my Hyuuga Ass; does this bastard know that the Hyuuga are the most important and respected family in this village? Second only to the extinct Namikaze! Whether Main Clan or Branch Clan, the Hyuuga are revered amongst the shinobi of Konoha. Lady Hinata has brought more prosperity to the Hyuuga and has healed the rift between the two branches of our family and yet this foreigner deigns to insult us! Upon my honor as a Hyuuga, I will defeat this…this…this…boy."**__, thought Chitose as she prepared to perform the technique first shown by the head of the Hyuuga Branch Clan. _

Zaiden stepped back as he recognized the intent flaring up from his opponent. He knew what was coming and yawned in boredom. During his travels to find his sensei, he'd run into a few Hyuuga shinobi and had defeated them in combat. Zaiden never killed those Hyuuga because he believed that it was wrong to kill those who wasted his time. Like all shinobi, Zaiden had no qualms about killing. In fact, he'd eliminated a quartet of missing-nin two months into his voyage who thought that a thirteen year old kid was an easy mark.

"_**Those fools paid for their underestimation with their lives.",**__ mused Zaiden as he reached up and adjusted the headphones to his portable CD player for a more comfortable fit. _

Jumping back, Zaiden cast a glance up at the balcony and looked at Saiga-sensei and his two teammates. Nodding to the trio, Zaiden gave them a grin and returned his attention to the Hyuuga in front of him.

From her position against the rail, Saiga groaned and slapped her forehead with her hand. Her student was about to do something foolish. Her two students cast concerned glances in her direction as Saiga mumbled under her breath.

"What's wrong Saiga-sensei? Is Zaiden doing alright", asked Chiara as she worriedly shifted from one foot to the next.

"Nothing Chiara, nothing's wrong except the fact that your teammate is about to antagonize every Konoha ninja here. Dammit, I really hate it when he taunts his opponents! I always end up having to write a report back to our village explaining why we need to send funds to pay for all the damage he's caused. Crap, crap, crap, crap crap!!!"

Chiara gave her other teammate a questioning glance only to be disappointed when Horus shrugged his shoulders. He didn't know what their sensei meant by that either. Seeing Horus return his attention to the ring, Chiara cussed beneath her breath. Just because Horus had lost his match against one of the other Konoha Genins (although his opponent had to be rushed to the hospital after the match), it didn't meant that he could cop an attitude with her.

"Shit, I won my match in record time and he's fuming. Ahh, screw it, I'm just gonna enjoy the match.", griped Chiara.

A few steps down the railing from Saiga and her team, Naruto cast a worried look at his young Genin. At the beginning of the match, Naruto had been concerned when his most level-headed genin had stiffened and gone on the attack. At least she had followed his instructions and stuck to the Hyuuga Gentle-Fist style. Chitose Hyuuga was the most level-headed genin on his team. She wasn't as active as her cousin except when an opponent intrigued or insulted her.

"I bet that kid insulted Chitose's family. If there was ever anything that would set her off such much so that she'd attack without thinking, insulting the Hyuuga Branch Clan was at the top of the list. At least Hanabi wasn't like her old self. That would of set off a serious fight between the two.", murmured Naruto as he gazed intently down at the arena.

Returning his concentration to the fight, Naruto hoped his student wouldn't be devastated if she lost. There was still a chance she'd be promoted sometime in the future.

Back in the arena floor, Zaiden was tired of the match and wanted to end it as quick as possible. He'd been playing with this Konoha Kunoichi long enough. Shutting off the CD player and removing the headphones from his ears, Zaiden faced his opponent and gave her a bored once over as he categorized her appearance. Ignoring the rips in her clothes from his parrying her attacks, Zaiden catalogued his opponent.

_**"Breathing heavily, near exhaustion. Chakra almost depleted but still enough to keep her Byakugan active although at a vastly reduced level of ability. Defiant, proud, and pushing herself further than she'd ever pushed herself before. She's waiting for my attack so that she can go into the Hyuuga Kaiten. I better keep an eye out; she may have created a counter attack to complement her clansmen's absolute defense unlike the other Hyuuga I've fought. Oh well, Saiga-Sensei is looking worried so I guess I must end this.", **__thought Zaiden with a sigh as he cleared his throat in preparation for the reaction he knew was coming. _

"Ah, the Infamous Hyuuga Clan of Konohagakure: wealthy, powerful, influential, and unfortunately, quite predictable in battle if you know what to look for. First, the Hyuuga always activate their Kekkei Genkai. Next they settle into the Jyuken or the bastardized version of the Gentle Fist the present clan members' use. It's quite easy to get past this Gentle Fist if you are not intimidated by it. The true Gentle Fist originally practiced by the Hyuuga was impossible to get around. Back to my main subject here, the Hyuuga prefer to defend than attack although some do attack first. Their defense, the so called 'Kaiten' is stout and very interesting. Unfortunately, it too has a weakness that can be exploited if you know what it is. I won't mention that weakness here in the spirit of détante and peace, plus it could ruin the civility between my village and Konoha. Once you drive a Hyuuga to a limit, they will always, always use the 'Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms' Technique to close off their opponents' tenketsu which they can see with their Byakugan. I've fought Hyuuga many times and each time, they sealed their defeat when they initiated that technique. Now as I stand here over my defiant opponent, I can see the fire in her eyes that screams for my defeat, if she can. I will give you a choice; either surrender now or attempt to use the 64 Palms and seal your defeat. Which do you choose, Hyuuga?", Zaiden asked with an edge to his voice.

Chitose was in a state of shock. Her opponent knew of the ultimate Hyuuga techniques and had defeated them. This was…was…inconceivable. To top it all off, he had the absolute gall to ask for her surrender? The frown on Chitose's face became more intent as she scrambled to her feet, the audience in the area stepped back as she unleashed her killer instinct. Up in the stands, Hanabi was quietly cheering her cousin on. This boy from an unnamed village had grievously insulted her family. There was but one course of action for one who would do such a thing. Hanabi waited for the word that would signify that Chitose was going to uphold the family honor. They weren't long in coming.

"For the honor of my family I will defeat you. For the honor of Hinata-dono and Neji-sama, I will utterly defeat you and regain the lost honor of the Hyuuga. Fool you have just sealed your eternal fate.", growled Chitose.

Zaiden gave a bored yawn, then, with a smirk, deliberately stepped into his opponents striking range. Chitose saw her opponent's move and grinned in triumph. Up in the stands, Hanabi, Naruto, and Junichi were all ecstatic. They were going to be the only team to have all three Genins in the final round of the Tournament. Just a few steps away from the rejoicing Konoha Team, the two members of the team from the Unnamed Hidden Village were groaning in disgust. Though neither Chiara nor Horus had ever faced a Hyuuga before, they knew the Hyuuga routine. Chiara sighed and turned her attention to her teammate. Just as she was about to say something, the fourteen year old Kunoichi saw that her sensei was laughing.

Saiga Hatake had heard her student's speech and had most wholeheartedly approved of his choice of words. For the nine+ months she'd been traveling and training this young genin, Saiga knew that nothing any Hyuuga did was going to be able to stop him. Looking around to see if she could spot the Jonin-sensei in charge of Zaiden's opponent, Saiga let her eyes rest on the blonde-haired guy several paces down from her and her team. Chuckling to herself, Saiga made her way down to her fellow Jonin.

Naruto was in the process of telling Hanabi and Junichi that he was going to treat them to ramen at Ichiraku's when he felt a tap on his shoulder. Turning around, the nineteen year old man saw a beautiful woman wearing odd clothes for a Kunoichi. Letting his eyes lift from the woman's face to the hitai-ate around her head, Naruto quirked an eyebrow when he saws that the plate on the headband was blank. Shifting his facial expression from happy to neutral, Naruto waited for the stranger to approach him and start the conversation. He wasn't waiting long.

"Is that your student down there facing mine?"

"Yes, she is my student. What's it to you?"

"Oh nothing, I was just curious and wanted to meet the idiotic sensei who'd allow one of his students to foolishly think she can defeat a genin of the Unnamed Hidden Village."

"_WHAT?"_

Hanabi heard the words of the strange Kunoichi and got angry. Ignoring the pleading of her teammate, the main family Hyuuga member butted in to the conversation.

"Lady, I don't know who in the fuck you think you are but if you believe that my cousin will lose to your student, you have another thought coming. My cousin is one of the protégé's of the head of the Hyuuga Branch Clan and the only Kunoichi studying under Neji-dono, the honorable head of the Hyuuga Branch Clan."

Saiga looked at the young woman and snorted. Returning her attention to the blonde Jonin, she frowned and asked him if he always allowed his students to show such pitiful manners.

"Only when they are defending their family and their teammate. Now if you will excuse me, I have to get ready to celebrate with my students."

"Hah, well if you have that much faith in your uncouth students then why not place a wager on the one in the arena. If you have the balls to do so that is."

Naruto growled his assent, all the while ignoring the whisper of his subconscious trying to stop him from doing something stupid.

"Okay, I'll bet you twenty thousand dollars that your student loses to mine. If your student wins, I'll pay for your team's trip to the restaurant of your choice. If my student wins, I would like public and written apologies from you AND your team apologizing for your comments.", commented Saiga with a hand on her hip and a smirk on her face.

"I accept. Be prepared to pay up, lady.", chuckled Naruto as he returned his attention to the fight in front of him.

Oblivious to the byplay between her sensei and the sensei of her opponent, Chitose spoke her final words to her opponent.

You are in the range of my divination. Eight Trigrams, Sixty-four palms.", yelled the young Hyuuga as she ran towards her opponent with her hands outstretched to reach her opponents tenketsu.

She never reached her intended target.

It all happened so fast; one moment she was attacking and had just started verbalizing her strikes (she never even got the first half of two palms out). The next, Chitose found herself on her back looking up into a pair of the darkest eyes she'd ever seen before. All was silent, then the pain hit.

Zaiden took one look at his downed opponent and knew that the exam for her was over. In the span of a few seconds, he'd inflicted serious damage to the Konoha kunoichi. Beneath his knee lay a thin layer of his chakra keeping him from striking what would definitely be a fatal blow to the sternum of his opponent. Seeing that Chitose was gasping for breath, Zaiden eased the pressure and started chastising the young girl.

"I told you to surrender and you, like the majority of your foolish clan, decided to continue this fight. I gave you the choice yet you threw it back into my face. Well you have your own self to blame. You see, I held back and you're still very close to dying. To keep you alive, I added a layer of chakra to my knee to cushion the impact. Right now, you have at least four severely cracked ribs, a couple of very bruised vertebrae one of which is just millimeters away from breaking and paralyzing you for life. You also have a bruised jaw, broken nose, dislocated shoulder, at least five broken fingers, and you almost fractured your larynx. Do you see now why I wanted you to surrender? You have potential; a lot of potential, as do your teammates. I saw that in the Forest of Death when your team was confronted by that team from Hidden Sound. But you fell into the same prideful trap shinobi worldwide do when they face me. Now I suggest you do not move until the medi-nins get here. Proctor, I believe that my opponent can not continue this match. I petition for you to declare the victor!", stated Zaiden as he rose to his feet and offered a bow to the Exam Proctor.

The cigarette in his mouth forgotten, Shikamaru Nara just stared at the young man in front of him. Like everyone else in the arena except for a select few, the lazy genius had gone white as a sheet as the boy had recited the litany of injuries he'd inflicted on his opponent. Hearing his name called by his fiancée, Shikamaru brought his attention back to the present and gazed at the patiently bowing shinobi. Growling under his breath, Shikamaru did what he was supposed to, albeit with a bit of reluctance tinge with worry over the young woman trying to breathe on the floor in front of him.

"The winner is… Zaiden from the Hidden Unnamed Village.", snapped Shikamaru as he unconsciously let some of his killer intent trickle out as he glared at the young man.

Zaiden felt the intent and sighed in resignation. It disturbed him when people let their emotions get the best of them whenever it came to him. Stopping in his walk back to where his teammates and sensei were standing, Zaiden turned around and faced the smoking Jonin before letting his own killer intent leak out. The minute they felt the vast killer intent between the two shinobi, every ninja in the arena went on alert.

"Proctor, I'm only going to tell you and everyone else here once and only once: the next time I feel _ANY _killer intent coming from anyone here no matter the village, I will kill them without warning. As you can see, my opponent tested my patience and lost. Do not look upon my kindness in sparing her life as a weakness. That is the first and only warning I give to all participants.", stated the boy in a graveyard voice that had chills going down everyone's spine.

Everybody's, except for one person.

Up in the balcony, Naruto was fighting an internal battle against his tenant. Kyuubi had heard the words of the boy and his anger had turned white hot. Kyuubi's anger and bloodlust was so intent that he did not realize that he was affecting his container. In the real world, those shinobi who knew or suspected the identity of the Jonin sensei of the of the wounded kunoichi lying on the floor being attended to by the medics led by Sakura Haruno cast worried glances in Naruto's direction. Many took one look and crapped their pants.

Naruto's eyes were flickering from blue to red and back before settling into an agitated dark purple. A purple that signified (for those in the know) that both Naruto and his tenant were observing the Genin. The combined rage was palpable, thick, and flooded the arena.

Down on the dais, Jiraiya felt the familiar feeling and immediately looked up at his student with a stern expression.

_"UZAMAKI!!! Go outside and calm down, now. That's a direct order!!", _yelled the Toad Sannin with a look that showed his displeasure at his student.

"Yes, Hokage-sama", replied Naruto in an emotionless voice that worried those who knew him best.

_**&&&&&&&&&&&**_

Konoha's Fifth Fire Shadow sat at the desk in her mansion and calmly sipped from a mug of tea as she gazed at the two shinobi standing at a rigid attention in front of her. Tsunade had been observing the preliminary matches in order to see how her husband handled his role as acting Hokage. As expected, the old pervert had excelled as her temporary replacement at the exam while she stayed home and helped her two infants to adjust to their new surroundings. Much to the relief of Koharu and Homura, the menial housewifey chores the Godaime Hokage performed, kept Tsunade busy. The most powerful woman in the Five Great Shinobi Nations slept during the early part of the morning, tidied up around the house of her grandfather, the Shodaime Hokage, in the afternoons after a quick nap before concentrating fully on the small amount of paperwork she took home that needed her direct attention while dealing with Hiruzen and Kurumi.

Placing her mug on the coaster, Tsunade shifted her gaze to the pink-haired Medical Jonin, with a glare worthy of her sensei, Tsunade gave Sakura her orders.

"Medical Jonin Haruno, effective immediately, you are suspended from your present duties as head of medical duties to the Chuunin Exam. You are to turn over everything you've gathered on the wounded genin to Ino Yamanaka. She will be replacing you as medial liaison to the exams and head of the field response teams assigned to the Chuunin Exam. Before you can ask, Amaru will take over Ino's position as the Chuunin Exam medical liaison assistant. You are ordered to go home. I do not want you anywhere near the arena for the final round. I don't care what you do but if I hear of you approaching within fifty yards of the arena, I will throw your ass in jail for disobeying the Hokage's orders. You've already embarrassed our village enough. Attacking one of the exam participants from the Hidden Unnamed Village, who I might add, have been allies of Konoha since before there was a Konoha to begin with. With this unexpected time off, spend some time by yourself; go shopping, eat out, start a new hobby or go and get laid for all I care. It's your time off. I don't want any of the others to see either hide nor hair of you in the immediate vicinity of the Final Round. Now get out and turn your files over to Ino.", stated Tsunade in a strict but calm tone of voice.

Sakura's mouth hung open and she was about to comment when her shishou gave her a casually imperious wave of a hand dismissing her from her sight. The dismissal hurt all the more because Tsunade didn't even look at Sakura during the last part of her speech; choosing to return her attention to her simmering cup of tea before casually fixing her eyes on Sakura's file. Letting her head droop in dismay, Sakura acknowledged her orders and turned in preparation for exiting the office. As she reached the door, the Hokage's voice rang out again.

"I hope you realize that that genin kept you from making a bigger fuck-up than you did with his jutsu. And before you ask, that genin is right, I can't perform that jutsu, and you shouldn't even try. It requires a lengthy list of hand signs and more concentration than either you or I have. Unlike you, however, I took his words as a compliment instead of an insult. You're dismissed Haruno.", murmured Tsunade as she finally settled her gaze on the other shinobi on the side of her desk.

There was a loud click as Sakura's mouth snapped closed and her teeth crashed together. Recognizing the Hokage's body language expressing that it was futile for her to argue the point any further, Sakura bowed her head in acknowledgement and turned to face the door. As she exited the room, Sakura cast a depressed glance at her teammate and saw that Naruto was trembling with barely controlled anger at how callously his obaa-chan had treated his childhood crush.

Feeling better at the concern Naruto still showed her, Sakura reached out and placed a gentle hand on his shoulder. The warmth of her touch helped still the trembling figure and the blonde returned her concerned smile with one of his usual-albeit not as bright-smiles. In her chair, Tsunade ignored the byplay between the two and shifted her gaze to the paperwork on the desk. She wanted to give the pair a moment before she passed judgment on the Jounin sensei for Team Nineteen.

When her highly attuned sense of hearing, Tsunade heard her protégé leave and close the door behind her and lifted her head to face her adopted brother. Recognizing the stubborn cant to his chin and the barely visible glare in his eyes, Tsunade sighed.

"Naruto, I don't know what I'm going to do with you. You, like your teammate, almost caused an international incident with your actions. Unlike Haruno, your actions were levels above and beyond what could be called hostile. I cannot believe you allowed some of the Kyuubi's killer intent mingle with your own during the last part of the match. Dammit Naruto, I felt that burst of deadly chakra here and the fact that this mansion is a nice distance from the arena in the Forest of Death _AND _my suite of rooms is so reinforced against detection of those hostile to not just our village but to my family as well should tell you how strong your chakra was. I've already expressed my unhappiness with Shikamaru and Temari as well as a few other shinobi here. I had planned to suspend you along with your teammate but my oh so loving husband talked me out of it.", stated Tsunade as she looked over to where the acting Hokage was standing ramrod stiff against the wall.

Jiraiya gave a short angry nod in acknowledgment before his wife continued her counseling of his student. He was trying to figure out how to keep the Hyuuga Branch Clan from taking action against the shinobi. Jiraiya knew that the Branch Clan Matriarch, TenTen Hyuuga would have her hands full trying to be the voice of reason within her clan when her spirit was demanding they take offensive action. Tsunade saw the quandary Jiraiya was facing and decided to give her husband a hand and find several constructive outlets for the Hyuuga Branch Clan to vent their anger.

_**"I May have to enlist the help of the Hyuuga Main Clan in diverting the attentions of the Branch Clan.", **__mused Tsunade as she returned her attention back to her rebellious possible successor._

"So in place of suspending you, Naruto, I am ordering you to enroll in an anger management class for one month. Seven days a week, twelve hours a day you are to be in class. This means that you are not to take a majority part in training either of the two Genin from your team that qualified for the final round. Every three days you will be allowed to train them for six hours after all of your class work and assigned homework is done. Now I have other things to deal with. You are dismissed.", finished Tsunade with an air of finality as she spun her chair around to face the window.

Naruto glared at Tsunade's back as she ignored him to concentrate on the scene outside the window. Growling to himself, the nineteen year old Jonin and ANBU Black Ops cell commander whirled around and stalked out of the room. Tsunade gritted her teeth as she fought against her innate instinct.

Over in his position, Jiraiya watched and sadly shook his head. With the actions just taken, he knew that the loving bond between his student and his wife had started to fracture. Jiraiya agreed with the lesson but did not agree with the way it was taught. One way or another Naruto had to learn that being Hokage meant having to sometimes severely discipline the people closest to him regardless of how bad it felt. The Toad Sage opened his mouth to speak, only to be cut off by the Slug Sanin.

"He has to learn, Jiraiya. Naruto has to learn that once he ascends to this seat, he cannot have the same mentality as he does now. There are times when he'll have to agree to things that on the surface may seem extremely distasteful to him but will benefit the village as a whole in the future. To teach him that lesson, I have to be hard; harder than the hardest substance in the world. Many years from now, I hope and pray that when he looks back on this ass-chewing I gave him, he'll understand why I had to do what I did."

"Are you sure you did the right thing, Tsunade? I don't think now was the proper time to handle this like you did. I mean, one of his genin is in the hospital almost fighting for her career. Sakura's punishment, I understand. She made a big mistake and let things get to her head. You did the right thing with her. The Haruno needs to learn that sometimes, diplomacy is better than action.", replied Jiraiya.

Tsunade didn't say anything in response. Her head just dropped to her chest while her shoulders heaved. Having known his wife for a long time (and knowing women in general), Jiraiya walked over to Tsunade and wrapped his arm around her shoulders. He knew that sometimes, even Hokage's had to cry.

_**&&&&&&&&&&&**_

At Ichiraku's Ramen, the usually boisterous crowd was quiet. The reason for the silence sat stewing at the counter as he waited for his two Genin to arrive. When they did, Naruto forwent his usual greetings and told both of them that he wouldn't be able to help with their training during the month leading up to the final round. As expected neither of the teenagers was happy. Gritting his teeth in frustration, Naruto slammed his hand down on the counter.

"I _don't want to hear any complaints out of either of you now!!! _I called you here to let you know that for this month, I've asked Rock Lee and Gai-sensei to teach you the basics of their taijutsu style. Hanabi, I want you to find a way to integrate their Goken style with the Hyuuga Jyuken and see if you can combine the two into an effective style. I have a feeling that you will end up facing the shinobi who defeated your cousin. I want you to do this because he knows the Hyuuga Family Style and defeated it without breaking a sweat. It would be better that _IF_ you were to face him in the final round, you have to have all of the advantages you need. And with him expecting you to fight using Jyuken, he should be real surprised when a Hyuuga uses the Goken style of Taijutsu. Junichi, I also want you to train with Lee and Gai-Sensei but only in the mornings. In the evenings, I will be training you in the basics of my own taijutsu style when I can. Since I'm on the Hokage's shit list, I can't train you as much as I'd like to in this reprieve we have before the final round. Junichi, I believe my style will work for you. Combine it with your innate tactical sense and I believe you can beat this guy.", growled the blonde as he scarfed down some more ramen without looking at his charges.

Hanabi and Junichi glanced at each other once before acknowledging their orders. They finished their meal and were leaving when Naruto called them back.

"Before you start any kind of training, I want the both of you to go to the hospital and spend an hour or two with Chitose. Afterwards, I want you to return home and meditate. Clear your minds and don't focus on the events of the match. Once you've finished that, take a bath and go to bed early. Tomorrow you'll need to be well rested for your training. Learn everything you can and keep practicing. I want you ready for the final round. .", stated Naruto with his trademark grin.

"Okay, Naruto-sensei. We'll do as you ask. Don't worry sensei, we'll be ready and one of us will defeat the genin who eliminated Chitose.", Hanabi replied.

Naruto nodded at his students, yet he couldn't get rid of the nagging feeling that something was going to happen. Putting those thoughts in a secure place of his mind for later, Naruto watched as his students left the restaurant before returning to his own meal.

_**&&&&&&&&&&&**_

It was a late night and the Fifth Hokage was up dealing with her fussing son. Walking around the office with Hiruzen in her arms hoping he would calm down and return to sleep, Tsunade almost missed the light gust of air that brought a familiar scent to her nose. Stopping in the middle of the office, Tsunade reached for one of the kunai knives she always carried and allowed her demeanor to become the ice cold demeanor of a lioness protecting her young from predators.

"Alright, I know you're there because I can smell you. It would behoove you to do one of two things. First you can leave without revealing yourself which would be the smart thing to do. Or two, you can reveal yourself and face my wrath.", snapped Tsunade as she got ready to defend her family.

The gust of wind got stronger and with it so did the smell of roses and whatever was mixed with them. As the scent got stronger, Tsunade's eyes got wider. She knew that smell. It had been over twenty years since she last smelled it but she knew that scent. A flutter of motion caught Tsunade's eyes and she whirled in that direction. A figure stepped away from its enclosing shroud of fabric and moved towards the circle of light. Once the figure was close enough for the dim light to reveal some of the interlopers' facial characteristics, Tsunade gasped and dropped the kunai.

"_YOU!!!!!", _shrieked Tsunade as the face of her visitor became visible_. _

"Good evening Tsunade-Sensei. It's been a long time.", replied Saiga Hatake as she gracefully slipped into the room and took a seat.

_**______________________________________________________________________________________________**_

_And with that, I close out the fourth chapter of 'Promises in Snow and Ice'. I do hope you enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it. _

_As usual, I want to thank those readers who've followed this story up to this point and have been patiently waiting for the next installment. I also want to thank those who've reviewed this story. I greatly appreciate your reviews both positive and negative. My greatest thanks are given to Lovesrainscent for her editing and reediting (and getting on my case to finish this chapter ASAP) and for her continued support. _

_This chapter did not end the way I wanted to end it but I figured that the part I was going to put in would be better served by being in the next chapter. Speaking of the next chapter, Uchiha fans rejoice, both Itachi and Sasuke will be making their grand appearances in this story. Also, Naruto's quest to find Koyuki will begin. But before he can start, there's something he has to do and something he has to learn. _

_Ta ta for now, my friends. _

_**Knightewolfe's Lair**_

_**April 2009 **_


	5. Chapter 5

_**Once more unto the breach dear friends.**_

_**Promises in Snow and Ice.**_

_**Chapter 5.**_

In one of the many outposts that made up the Hidden Sound Village, a young man walked around with a serious frown on his face. The ninja who were out and about at this time scattered to the winds as the leader of their village stalked his domain while radiating a massive killing intent. Many who were unlucky enough to witness one of the surviving scions of the murdered Uchiha Clan were smart enough to not notice his slight limp.

Twenty year old Sasuke Uchiha was beyond angry. He was livid. Turning to the bespectacled, red-headed woman walking beside him, he snarled as he remembered the battle that had caused his limp.

"Dammit, Karin, isn't there anything else you can do for this accursed limp of mine. It's been two months, _TWO MONTHS, _since that dammed genin fought my brother and I to a bloody standstill and left us on the writhing on the ground with our wounds!", snarled Sasuke as his leg again betrayed him and caused him to stumble.

"Sasuke-kun, I am sorry. I have done everything I can to heal you. You must admit that your recovery to this point is nothing short of miraculous. Any other shinobi with your wounds would still be in a hospital bed trying to wait for their legs to heal up to the point where they can walk.", replied the kunoichi in a demure voice.

"_**Yeah, right. Any shinobi except for the one I MUST kill! Damn you Naruto for all that the Kyuubi no Kitsune gives you.",**__ thought Sasuke as he again cursed the fact that his former teammate and first friend had advanced healing power and he-the vaunted scion of the deceased Uchiha Clan-didn't._

Whirling back around with a more pronounced glare on his face, Sasuke continued on his way with Karin trailing respectfully behind. In his mind, Sasuke added another name to the list of people he must kill so he could finally begin rebuilding his clan.

Hours later, Sasuke was alone in his quarters glaring at the wall when he was interrupted by a knock on the door.

"_Who is it!"_

"Sasuke-san, it's me, Karin."

"_Didn't I order you to leave me alone! "_

"Yes master, you did. However, a messenger has arrived requesting an audience with you."

"_Dammit, Karin. You take the message and leave me alone!", _Sasuke growled menacingly at the door.

"Sasuke, the message is from your brother.", replied Karin.

In a flash (or as best as he could with his limp), Sasuke was opening the door to accept the message. Spotting the scroll in the messenger's hand, Sasuke extended his hand for the missive. When it was deposited in his palm, Sasuke closed his fingers around it and used his other hand to wave both his concubine and the messenger away before closing the door.

Out in the hallway, Karin glared at the door as it slammed shut in her face. She cursed herself for loving such an emotionless man but at the same time she loved his tender caresses and the whispered words of his affection she knew were false during those nights he let his facade fall and sought her out to satiate his lust and in an attempt to rebuild his clan. Turning to the stoic messenger, Karin gave him a pointed look and indicated that his job was done and he could leave. Letting a bit of her own killing intent leak out, Karin let the shinobi know that his presence was no longer required and he was dismissed. As the man stumbled over his own two feet trying to get away from what he thought was his imminent demise at the hands of the kunoichi protecting her master like the proverbial guard dog, he was extremely happy that he was getting away from this village and its borderline obsessive psychopathic leader.

Behind the door, Sasuke unrolled the scroll sent by his traitorous brother and started to read. Midway through the message, an evil smile started to spread across his face. For all his hatred towards Itachi, Sasuke had to give the leader of the second tier of Akatsuki a modicum of credit. Itachi was pretty damn smart about setting traps for the shinobi who'd befuddled, shamed, and defeated his fellow members of the first tier of the dreaded Akatsuki Organization.

Putting his hands into the familiar signs for the summoning jutsu, Sasuke summoned one of the offspring of his Chief Summons and ordered the highly poisonous viper to travel to the other Uchiha missing-nin and give him Sasuke's reply.

"I hear and obey, master. Do not forget my reward.", answered the viper.

"Follow your orders and when you return, your reward will be waiting.", replied Sasuke brusquely.

The viper dispelled itself in a cloud of toxic smoke and once again Sasuke was left alone. This time however, the pronounced frown on his face was morphing into an evil grin.

"I have you now, my eternal enemy. In time you will kneel to my superiority and Konoha will bow to the superiority of the reborn Uchiha!", cackled Sasuke as he evilly rubbed his hands together.

That day, the shinobi of the Hidden Sound Village shuddered as a plan that would change the way of the world as they knew it was hatched by the two surviving members of the ill-fated Uchiha. Somewhere in the netherworld, the souls of the dead clan looked on in approval as their successors plotted to bring their defeated clan back into prominence.

_**&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&**_

In Konoha, Lady Tsunade made her way to the Hokage's balcony of the arena where the final round of this quarters' Chuunin Exam was to be held. As she entered the specially constructed glass chamber her aged eyes gazed around at those gathering for this event. Approaching her seat, she cautiously adjusted the sling holding her one month old son Senju Hiruzen. A few respectful steps behind the hem of her official robes followed Jiraiya with another sling carrying their daughter Senju Kurumi. As she sat down, Tsunade acknowledged the nod of the Godaime Kazekage of the Hidden Sand Village, Sabaku no Gaara and his family.

Three days previously, Gaara had arrived for the long-awaited (and much delayed) wedding of his sister, the Wind Mistress Sabaku no Temari to her longtime beau; Shadow Master Shikamaru Nara. It had been a time of revelry and celebration for the citizens of both villages as the new Treaty of Alliance had been signed and sealed. Tsunade chuckled as she remembered the foolish grin of the young Jounin as one of the fire monks had officiated the ceremony.

Looking down at the gathered applicants Tsunade sighed as she spotted the angry glare of the second heiress to one of Konoha's most prominent clans. She knew that the fourteen year old kunoichi was still steamed at how her cousin had been defeated in the preliminaries of this round. Her network of information gatherers had hinted at the barely restrained rage of the Hyuuga Clan. Feeling the gentle touch of her husband, Konoha's Godaime Hokage glanced at the renowned author and esteemed super-pervert and nodded. It was time for her to make the opening speech. Taking a deep breath and rising to her feet, Tsunade gracefully stepped up to the carefully positioned microphone and started.

"Citizens of Konoha and our honored guests, I, Senju Tsunade, the Godaime Hokage of Konohagakure no Sato now decree that the third round of this exam be commenced. After a few words from Master Jiraiya of the Sanin, I will turn the control of this grand event over to the designated proctor."

Finished with her short speech, Tsunade stepped back and allowed Jiraiya to step to the microphone and explain his newly created 'Bracketolgy Jutsu'. When he was finished, Tsunade returned to the microphone.

"Jounin Nara Shikamaru, I hereby designate you as the proctor for this portion of these venerated exams. Sir Proctor, the arena is yours."

And with those words, Tsunade returned to her seat and made herself comfortable.

Meanwhile, in The Land of Spring and Snow, Koyuki Kazahana suffered through another indeterminable meeting with her council. Once again, the topic of this meeting was her continued refusal to name a fiancé'

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Koyuki stifled a yawn of boredom as she again listened to the members of her council as they debated the merits of those applicants requesting the hand of their princess in marriage. Over the past several days, the old men and women had complained, argued, cursed, pleaded, and downright begged for her to make her choice. Each time, she had stood by her steadfast refusal to consider any of her potential suitors and had changed the subject to something she actually had an interest in.

And each time the damn council had dug in their heels and returned to the hated subject.

Simply put, she was bloody well sick and tired of all the angry mutterings.

Shifting her subtle gaze to the window so that the elderly blowhard now speaking wouldn't notice that she again wasn't paying him any attention, Koyuki watched as the children of the land played in the gathered snow and clamored for attention from their friends. Life since her forced return had become dull. The vibrant eyes that usually shined with mirth or flashed with anger now showed a pronounced apathy.

_** "I came back from an enjoyable vacation in my winter chalet for this?? The topic for this meeting is a travesty. Why in the hell did they send me an important recall just because the Daimyo in the Land of Wind had sent his grotesque son to petition to court me again? A petition I have repeatedly turned down for the last few years! Crap, this sucks!! And to top it off, I wasn't able to send any of my Snow Shinobi to Konoha for the Chuunin Exams!! Dammitalltohell and back, I hate this.", **__the agitated princess mentally griped as she returned her attention to the blowhard in question. _

Sighing to herself, Koyuki resigned herself to the rest of the meeting. She knew that at the conclusion of this meeting, her head was going to be hurting. Leaning back in her comfortable chair, Koyuki grinned as she saw that several of the council members were again grumbling about her actions of a few years previous when she'd declared at another marathon meeting about something they thought important (which she had deemed quite irrelevant, inconsequential and had dismissed out of hand) that from that point on; the gaudy chairs they'd bought or inherited were no longer welcome in the council chambers. Koyuki had given them an ultimatum to get rid of those gaudily ugly spectacles of wealth as soon as possible or face her wrath.

Reaching out for her abandoned cup of tea, Koyuki let her hand graze the special three drawer cabinet that sat beside her chair as a subtle reminder to the babbling councilor that if he chose to continue his unwanted ramblings, she was going to demonstrate her displeasure in the strongest and most violent way she deemed possible. Many councilors still winced at the memories they had when the cabinet had first appeared a couple years back. Several councilors had openly questioned the reason of its placement and had been most irritated when the princess refused to answer any questions pertaining to the drab thing.

Those questions were answered a few weeks later when, during a most intense discussion, the princess had become enraged and had yanked open the top drawer, withdrew whatever was secreted within, and sent the object screaming down the table to impact with the face of a dissenting councilor with a shocking splat. It turns out that secreted inside the drawer were several firm snowballs that Koyuki had no qualms about fastballing down the table to quiet those councilors who angered the princess to the extent where she couldn't speak.

Though it didn't deter some of the most persistent of council members in the least, the good thing about the glistening spheres was that the council members had increased their ability to dodge thrown objects exponentially. The men of the council still remembered the time, one of their younger brethren had so angered the princess that instead of reaching for one of the snowballs in the top drawer, she'd grabbed one of the ones from the bottom drawer and side-armed it in his direction. Unfortunately the poor sod found out the hard way that the bottom drawer snowballs were spiked with rocks and ice when he'd had the misfortune to stand at the exact wrong time only to receive the speeding sphere of snow firmly in the groin.

Every lady on the council had stood and given Koyuki a round of applause at the direct hit as their male counterparts had gazed in fear at the man writhing on the ground in pain and had winced in commiseration. Of course the roles were reversed a few weeks later when it was demonstrated that the princess was an equal opportunity hurler and had struck the eldest matriarch on the council in the chest with another spiked snowball when that well-respected lady had had the gall to strongly disagree with Koyuki over yet another minor issue. After the woman had been carried away by a medical team, the council took pains to purchase protection for those vulnerable extremities.

Koyuki never apologized for her actions whenever she tossed one of the projectiles in any direction and the council quickly learned to not bring up certain subjects.

Sometimes the twenty-five year old princess would toss a snowball into the center of the table just for the hell of it to remind her advisors to relax and loosen up a bit. Of course that occasionally degenerated into a lively snowball fight to break up the monotony of the meetings. As expected, there were times when the tables were turned on the princess and she became the recipient of a flung snowball. It seems that the council matriarch often took a perverse glee in the fact that she could still catch the young woman off guard when the time called for it.

Hearing the room go silent, Koyuki tumbled to the fact that the speaker had finished whatever he had to say and the council was awaiting her response. The princess glanced around the room at the faces and expressions directed her way and took a moment to rid herself of the memories. Out of the corner of her eye, Koyuki caught the disappointed expression of Aoikaze Midori as she returned the snowball in her hand to the correct receptacle. The princess chuckled at the motion and gave the elderly woman a nod of acknowledgement. Taking a breath, Koyuki started her reply.

"For the moment, let us put that topic on the backburner for now and discuss the early return of the heralded ferocious, once-in-a century weather. I am concerned that if the temperature continues to drop and the upcoming blizzards increase in their ferocity, the crops will fail and we'll have to dig deep into our reserves to keep our people fed. I am especially worried about the dwellings of the elderly who can't afford the necessary repairs. Also, the children at the orphanages will suffer from the freezing winds. I do not want to lose anyone this winter since it looks like it is going be exceptionally harsh. After this meeting, I plan to talk to the leader of our shinobi to see if we can cut back on accepting missions that will take shinobi away from our country for extended amounts of time. If he concurs, I'm going to authorize him to withdraw a substantial amount of funds to pay the shinobi from the Village Hidden in the Snow for missions to open the shelters, repair the homes of the elderly, start winterizing the orphanages, and set up waystations all over the Land of Snow for those travelers who are too dumb to know about our winters' harshness for their own good. Also, I will see if I can get Lady Tsunade and Lord Gaara to send some medi-nins to assist those of the Hidden Snow assigned to work the waystations and shelters. Are there any objections?", asked Koyuki as she leaned forward in her seat and placed her elbows on the table.

"Koyuki-hime, if our coffers run low, how will we pay those who assist us?", asked a councilor who was a strong proponent of her marrying the Daimyo's son.

"If needed, I will withdraw an amount to be decided by and voted on by the council from the Kazahana Family Accounts to supplement the funds set aside for such a time. Are their any more questions?"

Koyuki studied her council and saw that they were in full agreement and would support her plan to help her people. Nodding to the council, she asked if there was any more business to be discussed. When none were forthcoming-and to forestall another long-winded speech-Koyuki closed the meeting and dismissed the council. Rising from her seat, she made her way towards the nondescript door that led to the foyer of her office. On the way, she was joined by those who represented the shinobi of the Hidden Snow to clear up any confusion and to solidify her plan for implementation. Once that was done, Koyuki entered her private office, dropped into her chair and sighed. Her private plans for the rest of the day were shot to hell. Leaning back in her seat and gazing at the ceiling, the princess-turned actress-turned empress readied herself for the upcoming paperwork.

"There's no rest for the weary in times like these. I guess I'll start with the documents dealing with the weather."

And with that, the Princess of Snow and Spring rolled up the sleeves of her top and settled into what would turn out to be an excruciatingly long day of the drudgery that one of her exalted status had to suffer in order to help the people of her land.

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Back in Konoha, it had come down to the final bout of the exams. As expected by some, Hyuuga Hanabi had advanced to the final. Many spectators had chosen her to be the overall winner of the match and expected that her opponent would be a pushover for the heiress.

Alas, it had not turned out the way many had predicted.

Hanabi glanced at the large screen across from her and tingled with excitement as the last semi-final match concluded. Her opponent turned out to be the one shinobi she had been chafing to fight since the end of the preliminaries. The young man from the Unnamed Hidden Village who had utterly and ruthlessly defeated her teammate Junichi in what had ended up becoming a very bloody match.

"Ah, I've been waiting to face him. Now I can put my plan into action.", growled Hanabi in delight while hefting the shoulder bag that had been her constant companion throughout this round.

Looking around to see if anyone noticed her, Hanabi headed to the kunoichi locker room one level below the observation balcony where the participants had been standing during the event. Once inside the locker room, Hanabi entered one of the stalls at the far end of the area. Closing the door behind her and locking it, the fourteen year-old Hyuuga Kunoichi slipped her bag off of her shoulders and started to disrobe. When she was down to her undergarments, Hanabi took a moment to admire her figure in the full-length mirror. Knowing that she would always be smaller in the bust department than her sister, Hanabi sighed.

"My plan would work much better if mother had bequeathed to me the genes for a generous bust. At least my opponent will be a little bit distracted.", mused the Second Princess of the Hyuuga.

Shaking her head at the cards she'd been dealt and deciding to just flow with it, Hanabi reached into her bag for the first phase of her plan to enact revenge on the genin who'd insulted her Family and harmed her cousin. Smirking at her chosen battle outfit, Hanabi snorted as she reminisced about who she got the idea for the new battle outfit from.

Downstairs in the arena, Hanabi's opponent was bored. Zaiden had lifted an eyebrow when his opponent had been announced but other than that hadn't reacted much. Walking over to one of the walls, the fourteen year-old shinobi had taken a seat in the shade as he awaited his opponent to make her appearance. After five minutes and no opponent, the Jounin proctor had requested guidance from the Hokage. Zaiden had snorted when Lady Saiga's Jounin sensei had told the proctor to wait ten minutes before declaring Zaiden the winner by forfeit.

The young boy had yawned at the declaration and had promptly put his arms behind his head and closed his eyes. Zaiden was seconds away from drifting off when a shocked silence came over the crowd. Correctly guessing that the silence heralded the arrival of his opponent (plus he could feel her footsteps through the ground), Zaiden cracked an eye in acknowledgment. The eye had started to close when the recorded image made it to his mind. Both of Zaiden's eyes snapped open in amazement as he took in the reason for the silence.

His opponent had changed her attire sometime in the past few minutes. And…damn wasn't her new battle outfit interestingly enticing.

Hanabi smirked to herself as she saw her opponent's reaction to her chosen wear. She knew that her choice of attire was scandalizing the close-minded elders from the Hyuuga Clan with the little it left to the imagination.

Up in the stands, as her sister made her way towards the center of the arena, Hinata cast an evil glance in the direction of the blonde kunoichi of her generation. Seeing the surprised look on the face of Yamanaka Ino, Hinata returned her gaze to the center. Whether she won or lost, Hanabi had a lot to answer for about her appearance and chosen attire to her clan head.

Down in the arena, the younger Hyuuga sister stopped in the center of the arena and faced her opponent. Keeping a straight face was hard as Hanabi watched as her opponent tried to keep his attention on her face and fail. During the speech by the newly married Nara, Hanabi could see that Zaiden's eyes kept slipping to her legs.

Zaiden was wondering what was wrong. His attention was wandering as a slight gust of wind rustled his opponent's battle skirt just enough to reveal the short spandex leggings underneath. Lifting his gaze from the pale, yet firm legs, Zaiden noticed the flat expanse of skin between the bottom hem of her sleeved halter top and the top hem of the skirt. As he gazed at his opponent, a part of Zaiden's mind gave a bit of credit to Hanabi for using a camouflage pattern that mimicked the pattern he wore except for the obviously different colors. Where the pattern on his outfits were various differing shades of grey, black, and white, the colors of her pattern were shades of green and white. Letting his eyes roam to his opponent's footwear, Zaiden saw that Hanabi had chosen to mimic the closed toe moccasin style boots of his sensei. The only difference was that hers had no heel.

Bringing his attention back to the proctor as he finished his speech, Zaiden gazed intently at his opponent and tried to divine her thoughts. When the Jounin finished, Zaiden spoke.

"They say that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. No matter, your choice of attire won't help. I still think that your vaunted clan is still third rate with a fourth rate taijutsu style. I suggest you give up now. At the moment, I would rather not send you to the hospital like I sent your kinswoman."

"Are you going to talk, or are you going to fight?", replied Hanabi as she crossed her arms over her chest and returned his stare.

"Very well then, I guess you're making a statement."

Hanabi nodded in acknowledgment. Looking up to the stands and spotting the gathered members of the Hyuuga, Hanabi glanced around for the members she was looking for. Upon finding those family members she was searching for, Hanabi reached up to the left shoulder with her right hand and grasped a loose piece of fabric. As she tugged the fabric away, it revealed the emblem the teenager had had embroidered there. When more of the emblem was revealed to the world, the crowd gasped.

There, embroidered in stark red silk, was a representation of a seal that the Hyuuga had, with the ascendance of Hinata to head of the clan, been forbidden to use ever again. The dreaded Caged Bird Seal.

Hinata narrowed her eyes as she realized the implication of the mark as it was being used by Hanabi.

_**"My god, Hanabi chose to use the mark the way it was designed before it was adapted by the Main Family to use as a way to seal away the power of our Kekkei Genkai upon the death of a member of the branch family. Hanabi is using it as a declaration of her intent to kill her opponent for crimes he's committed against the Clan! This is not good.", **__thought Hinata as she sat up a bit straighter. _

Turning her attention from her family to her opponent and settling into that familiar stance, Hanabi waited for the proctor to start the match. Gazing across the short distance to her opponent, the teenager saw that her actions had not been lost on her opponent. She watched as his face expressed a grudging element of respect before settling his ever present headphones over his ears and settled into his own stance.

As he observed the combatants in front of him waiting for his signal to start the match, Shikamaru Nara shivered at an imagined chill in the air. The newly married Jounin could sense the intense feeling of vengeance roiling off of Hanabi. She had something to prove and _**NOTHING **_was going to stop her from proving it. Shifting his eyes to the other combatant, Shikamaru could feel the slight peak of interest radiating from the otherwise bored looking shinobi. Hit by a case of nerves, the twenty year-old reached into his vest pocket and pulled out his crumpled pack of cigarettes and extricated one before sticking it in his mouth and sliding the pack back into his pocket. Using his old lighter to put flame to the cancer stick, Shikamaru got ready for the battle that was coming.

Placing his lighter back in his pocket, the exam proctor glanced from Zaiden to Hanabi. Seeing that both were shaking with restrained energy, Shikamaru took his cigarette out of his mouth and examined the lit end and its ashes. Knocking the excess off, he sighed and prepared to start the match.

"Alright you two, you know the rules. Don't be so damn troublesome. Are you ready? _Let's get it on!!", _stated Shikamaru as he dropped his hand to start the match and jumped way the hell back.

There was a moment of anticipation, then, with an explosion of killer intent, the fight commenced.

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It was a well recorded fact that most shinobi battles were over in seconds. Ninja were in effect; shadow warriors who arrived, completed their mission, then disappeared into the darkness like ghosts; their mission complete. There had been reports that had battles lasting several minutes but they were few and far between. Even in the rounds of the Chuunin Exam where shinobi do battle for extended periods of time, it was rare for a match between two Genin to last more than five minutes. Matches between strategic and tactical geniuses like the one between Sabaku no Temari and her future husband Nara Shikamaru did last slightly longer but that was the exception; not the rule.

The match between Hyuuga Hanabi and Zaiden from the Hidden Unnamed Village had lasted-so far-for an unheard of forty-five minutes.

Zaiden flipped back to avoid the flurry of Goken-enhanced punches and kicks his opponent had switched to using a third of the way through their match. The strikes that had gotten through his stiff defense had struck with a fierce intensity. At the moment, Zaiden knew he had a slightly cracked rib and numerous bruises and contusions. A cut above his left eye had-for awhile-been steadily dripping blood that had obscured his vision until he'd used a basic medical jutsu to stop the bleeding and temporarily seal the cut. Fortunately for him, Zaiden's CD player was untouched and continued to send a steady stream of music into his ears.

When he had retreated to give himself enough space to think, Zaiden had crossed his arms and studied his opponent with a new eye. What he saw was a determined woman, who even though she was wounded, kept fighting to uphold her family's honor. This impressed Zaiden quite a bit and he revised his original estimate of those of Hyuuga lineage upwards a bit.

For her part, Hanabi was slowly but steadily approaching her limit. Her right eye was swollen shut, nose slightly askew, she limped from what she suspected was a slightly broken leg, and her head was pounding so badly that on occasion she was seeing double. Yet through her wounds, and her blood-soaked battle outfit, Hyuuga Hanabi stood proud. Resetting her form into a variation of the Goken-style, Hanabi settled down in preparation for the next attack from her opponent.

When Zaiden had broken through her Kaiten, fought off her Jyuken, and had shook off her Eight Trigrams, Sixty-Four Palms as if it were a light breeze, Hanabi had broken with Hyuuga tradition and switched to the Goken she'd been training in and adapting to her Jyuken. To her welcome surprise, her opponent had missed the switch and Hanabi had made serious contact as demonstrated by an early reluctance on his part for close-in fighting. A few of the more destructive jutsus known by both shinobi had been tossed around with reckless abandon, as was an attempt by Hanabi to ensnare her opponent in a wicked Genjutsu which he'd speedily and effortlessly broken.

The two shinobi studied each other from across the arena as the crowd went silent. Since the start of this match, not one member of the audience had dared to leave their seats for even a second. The gathered Hyuuga had lived up to their image and several were observing the match with their Byakugan active. Even the clan head had activated the vaunted Kekkei Genkai of the venerated Clan for a moment.

_This match was just that damn good!!!!!! _

Down in the arena, Hanabi cocked her head to the side as a memory from earlier in the match sped through her mind. Stopping and replaying it several times, the student of Konoha's Golden Whirlwind realized something about her opponent.

_** "So THAT's how he adapts to his opponent whenever they change things on him during a battle. He studies his enemy and changes his music. When he fought Chitose, I saw it. I observed it again in his matches in the final round. Even against my teammate, this bastard changed his music, and quickly adapted to Junichi when he switched to Naruto-sensei's taijutsu style. Is that his weakness? If so how can I exploit it?", **__thought Hanabi as she stoically observed the teenager across from her and ignored her various injuries. It was a bitch to think with her slightly fractured leg. _

Coming to a decision, Hanabi took a deep breath and rapidly formed several hand signs in succession. Across the way, Zaiden had only seconds to react.

It was too late.

His opponent disappeared for half a second. When she reappeared and attacked, Zaiden was caught off guard and turned to avoid the shin screaming his way. As he turned, Zaiden left his side open.

Hanabi pounced on the rare opening and rapidly changed the direction of her leg. Instead of going for the intended sweep of her opponents legs, Hanabi shifted her weight and altered her attack in the direction of her intended target: the CD player on her opponent's side. The results were expected.

Zaiden was knocked back several feet by the force of the kick and crashed into the unforgiving wall of the arena. His CD player shattered into a million pieces. Rising to his-somewhat wobbly-feet, the shinobi from Hidden Jungle looked at the remains of his player. Seeing the result of the attack, Zaiden stiffened and turned an emotionless gaze to his opponent. Spotting the burgeoning smirk of satisfaction on her face and noticing that Hanabi had unconsciously slipped back into the familiar Hyuuga Jyuken style, Zaiden growled in anger.

Within his mind, Zaiden's two guests mentally discussed this new turn of events with their host. The three came to a consensus and Zaiden returned his gaze to the female across from him. Taking a deep breath and making a hand sign recognized by everyone in the stadium, Zaiden used a familiar jutsu.

"_Kage Bunshin No Jutsu!",_

Instantly the crowd grew ugly. Where did this upstart learn this technique? A wholly Konoha technique, it was unbelievable that a ninja from the Unnamed Hidden Village would know such a thing.

Up in the stands, Naruto Uzumaki grew extremely concerned for his student. More than anybody presently gathered in the stadium, he knew how much damage a pair of shadow clones could inflict upon a Hyuuga. Opening his mouth to call for his student to forfeit, Naruto was halted by the voice of one of his fellow Jounin.

"Naruto, don't. Hanabi knows what to do if she ever ran into another Shadow Clone adept like yourself. Ever since you defeated me with that same technique, she's been training to counter it. When she found out you were going to be her sensei, Hanabi was ecstatic. She could finally study the Kage Bunshin up close. Leave her be, don't ruin her moment. She's declared vengeance and so she shall have it.", stated the head of the Hyuuga Brach Family, Neji.

Grunting to himself in exasperation, Naruto dropped his chin to his chest and kept his quiet.

Down in the arena, Zaiden turned to one of his clones. Opening the bag the clone carried and glancing inside, Zaiden reached in and pulled out what had caught his interest. Turning to his opponent, the shinobi held the object aloft. In the stands, Zaiden's twin older sisters groaned in exasperation.

"So that's where that went! The little snot had it the entire time! Elder sister Nefari's gonna be pissed!", exclaimed twenty-one year old Isis as she leaned back in her chair; her formfitting attire stretching to adapt to the her new position.

"Yeah, she's had to postpone her wedding for several months due to the fact that that heirloom was missing.", replied her thirty seconds younger twin sister Nahira.

Isis glanced at her sister and sighed. With her baby brother wielding the heirloom, he'd completed the secondary-family-ordered -objective of his mission.

Zaiden had no idea that his sisters were talking about him in the stands. He was busy stating his intentions to Hanabi.

"By the end of this match, I will have slipped my families' heirloom on to your leg. Be proud Hyuuga, you've impressed me enough to actually start taking this match a bit more seriously. Let it be known that I've revised my estimation of your clan and their taijutsu. From a third rate clan with a fourth rate style, your clan has moved up on my list to a second rate clan with a third rate style. Now prepare yourself Hanabi of the Hyuuga, I will demonstrate to you and your clan, the true Jyuken.", stated Zaiden.

Hanabi snorted in annoyance. Her opponent was starting to bore her with his grandiose speeches about her family not using the so-called true Jyuken. There was only one style of Gentle Fist and Hanabi was quite an adept at it.

Yet in the back of her mind, Hanabi thought of what she had overheard from one of the clan elders observing Hinata as she'd practiced her style of Jyuken. Bringing her mind back to the present, Hanabi glared at the lacy object in her opponent's hand. She'd recognized it the minute he'd pulled it out and mentally vowed that such a thing would never encircle her legs. Of course, Hanabi wasn't expecting what her opponent did next.

But then again, neither were more than half of the women in the audience.

Zaiden handed the object to one of his clones before turning back to face his opponent. Smirking a bit at the response he knew he was going to get, Zaiden grasped his pants and yanked forward. There was the sound of something ripping then, much to the surprise of the crowd; the Hyuuga's opponent was holding his pants in his hands. Several sets of eyes followed the fabric as he dropped it to the floor of the arena.

Zaiden heard the gasp of the crowd and smirked again. He wasn't done yet. _Not by a long shot!_ Keeping his gaze on his opponent (who was trying to restrain the burgeoning blush on her cheeks), Zaiden reached up to his left shoulder with his right hand and took a firm grip on the fabric of his shirt. Imitating Hanabi's actions from earlier, Zaiden gave the fabric a quick yank. And the crowd went silent.

Suddenly, from the stands, a young and feminine voice rang out.

_"DIBS!!!!!!!"_

Hanabi groaned in exasperation as she heard the voice of one of her kunoichi classmates. If she wasn't mistaken, that was the voice of one of the Aburame Clan kunoichi's of her age group (somewhere within the Five Great Shinobi Nations, a twenty-year old masked clansman to the vocal kunoichi sneezed).

Hanabi couldn't blame her classmate though; she was seeing the same thing and mentally griping that she hadn't been a bit quicker to stake her claim on the vision of shinobi perfection in front of her. When her opponent had stripped off his pants, Hanabi had been treated to a glimpse of a pair of firm light chocolate legs that bespoke of strength and agility before they were covered by a loose pair of stark white pants that billowed in the wind and were topped by a .loosely tied sash at the waist. However, that sight wasn't what had caused the unfamiliar feeling of want that suffused Hanabi. The sight of a firm brown chest dusted with a smattering of brown hair and a developing six-pack abdomen only covered by a pristine white tank-top did.

Up in the stands, Hatake Anko gave a long and loud wolf whistle that caused her to receive a matching pair of glares directed her way from both her husband and her mother-in-law. There was a sudden flurry of motion as several women fainted and had to be hurriedly revived by the medical personnel there although some of them were having trouble keeping their eyes off of the young man in the center of the ring. Even on the Hokage's balcony, Tsunade was having a hard time of her own breathing as she compared the strong chest of her husband to the chest of the still developing young man below.

_**"If Hanabi doesn't claim him for her own by the end of his time here in Konoha, I'm assigning her, her teammates, and her sensei to the most brutal of D and E ranked missions for at least two years. Damn, once that boy is of age, he's gonna be a heartbreaker par excellence!", **__thought Tsunade as she ignored the sudden flicker of anger from Jiraiya. _

Back down in the arena, Zaiden had retaken the object being held by his clones and mentally bid them to stand back. They did so as he performed a few stretches and exercises to loosen up a bit more.

"Ah, now I'm not restricted in my movements anymore. What say you Hanabi of the Hyuuga; shall we continue this dance macabre?"

"I'm still game if you are. I do have to tell you that you are not placing that garter on me no matter how hard you try."

"We'll see. By the way, I just have one more question; have you ever been kissed before?"

Hanabi started a moment as her mind processed the question. In that second, Zaiden attacked. Hanabi defended using the Gentle Fist but it was to no avail. The movements of her opponent were too hard to track even with her Byakugan activated. The boy looked as if he were dancing to music only he could hear. Her mind realized that in his motions there were strong hints of the vaunted Jyuken yet they were unlike any Hanabi had seen. Her opponent's movements flowed this way and that, fluidly, sensuously, pristine, emotionally. In Hanabi's mind, her feelings were a commingling of three separate and disparate elements.

One part of her was angry at this degrading of her heritage. Another part of her was in awe at how somebody from another village could perform those familiar motions so fluidly and effortlessly. A third part of her subconsciousness was observing his movements with an analytical eye as she compared this lost version of the Jyuken to what she'd been training in since she was three years old. The last part of Hanabi's mind was focused solely on her opponent and how he was touching something deep within her. Something she'd never realized was there.

As her mind wandered and tried to categorize the information being processed by the fourth part of her mind, Hanabi's body defended. Blocking strikes she could recognize, diverting those she didn't, and striking back when her body saw an opening. All of a sudden, the flurry of movement came to a stop and Hanabi found herself falling to the ground. Before she hit, she felt herself caught by a pair of strong arms. It took a second for all the information her mind had gathered to coalesce into something but when it did, Hanabi found herself unable to move as she felt the chillingly gentle caress of a kunai across her throat.

"Do you yield Hanabi of the Hyuuga?", came a whispered voice from behind that resonated in her ear and sent tingles down her spine.

As the words reformed themselves in her brain, Hanabi suddenly became very aware that she was being held against a firm chest by the arm around her waist. In the background, the teenager could hear the yells and protests of the members of her family (her sister's most strident among them). Trying to figure a way out of this embrace, Hanabi eyes whipped around as she sought an opening, any opening, to turn this hold against her opponent. Before she could take action, she felt the blade press firmly, almost threateningly against her jugular vein and knew that any motion by her head would cause her to slit her own throat.

Realizing that there was no way out without risking death, Hanabi let her shoulders slump in defeat.

"Proctor, I…I…I… I yield.", muttered Hanabi in a low voice heavy with disappointment.

Shikamaru Nara heard the proclamation from one of the best of the new generation and his heart fell. He'd been pulling for the Konoha kunoichi from the start of the final round. Shaking his head in despair, Shikamaru turned to the Hokage's box and officially ended the match.

"Lady Hokage, Lord Kazekage, and our distinguished guests; Hyuuga Hanabi has yielded to her opponent. Thus the winner of the final round of these Chuunin Exams is Zaiden from the Hidden Unnamed Village. Zaiden may I be the first to congratulate you on your victory. You fought well. Hyuuga Hanabi, though you are not the victor, I offer my congratulations to you for making it to this round. As proctor of this exam, I now declare this Chuunin Exam to be complete. Will all participants in this round make their way to the arena floor for closing ceremonies and a word from Lady Tsunade, the Godaime Hokage of Konohagakure."

And with those words, Shikamaru departed the arena. Oblivious to the departure of the Jounin, Hanabi felt the kunai move away from her throat and dropped to her knees. She'd failed to avenge her cousin. She'd failed to uphold the pride of both the Main and Branch Families of the Hyuuga Clan. Tears she refused to let fall filled her eyes until everything in sight was distorted.

Zaiden saw how hurt his opponent was and heard the sniffles she was attempting to smother. Shaking his head at her attempt to uphold her own personal pride, he made his way over to the girl, no young woman, who'd changed his opinion of the Hyuuga Clan and extended his hand. In her rapidly deteriorating peripheral vision, Hanabi saw the hand and lifted her head up to see who was offering. Seeing that it was the man who'd defeated her, her first thought was to ignore it. Banishing that thought, Hanabi accepted the proffered hand and allowed Zaiden to pull her to her feet.

"You fought well Hanabi of the Hyuuga. Your actions proved to me that the nobility of the Hyuuga Clan is not an act. They are indeed an honorable and treasured clan. You've shown me that. From this point on, I consider the Hyuuga to be a first rate clan with unbreakable bonds of loyalty to each other and a first rate style. One day in the future maybe we'll be able to spar with each other as friends.", stated Zaiden in a firm voice.

Hanabi nodded in acknowledgment at the kind words though she wasn't actually hearing them. Still grasping his hand, she could feel the honesty and truth in his words they were spoken and something within her responded and she mentally looked forward to that day when she and he could spar without the pressures of the exam. Gazing at her former opponent as he turned to face the approaching medical ninja coming to check on their wounds, Hanabi was taken aback when Zaiden turn to face the stands where her clan had gathered, went to one knee, and bowed.

Up in the stands, the Hyuuga were in shock and didn't know what to do about the sudden action. Those gathered all looked at their clan head for what direction to take. Sitting back in her seat and wondering what to do herself, Hinata was surprised when her cousin subtly elbowed her and told her to acknowledge the honor Hanabi's opponent was giving their clan. It took the nineteen year old a second to realize what TenTen was saying but when she did; Hinata rose to her feet and acknowledged the honor with a nod of her head and the graceful smile she was known throughout the world for.

Tsunade observed the interaction being played out between the shinobi from the Hidden Jungle Village and the Hyuuga Clan and grinned. Turning to Nara Yoshino, Tsunade asked that the glass at the front of her box be lowered so that she could give her closing speech to the participants without the interference of the protective glass. Yoshino frowned her disapproval but nodded and stated that she would have it done immediately. Tsunade nodded and leaned back in her seat while letting her hand drape over the arm of her seat to caress her sleeping children as they lay in the specially designed beds placed beside her seat.

_**&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&**_

About thirty minutes later, after the final two contestants had been given examinations by the Konoha Medical Corps ninja assigned to the exam and had their minor injuries healed with medical jutsus, all of the participants in the final round had gathered in the arena and were facing the Hokage and the Kazekage as the former gave her speech closing the exam. Hanabi listened as it was explained that it didn't matter whether they won or lost but their actions were going to be taken into consideration before final judgment was made and promotions given.

The medicine she'd been given to accelerate her healing was starting to make Hanabi sleepy and she was almost wishing that Lady Tsunade would hurry up so she could go home and sleep. Shifting her gaze down the line at Zaiden, she saw that he was impatient about something and that peaked her interest. Wondering what he was impatient about, Hanabi was jostled by an elbow from one of the other Konoha Genin to make it this far in the exam.

Hanabi was about to respond to the rude interruption when out of the corner of her eye, she saw Zaiden step forward and gaze intently at the Hokage.

From his position in front of the genin, Shikamaru hadn't seen the movement from Zaiden and was a bit confused when Tsunade gazed past him at the one shinobi who dared interrupt her words.

"Lady Tsunade, Honorable Hokage of Konoha. I, Zaiden from the Hidden Jungle Village do ask permission to make two requests."

Tsunade eyes narrowed at the child who interrupted her. Usually, she would have ignored him and kept on going with her speech but something in his voice caught her attention and she wondered what the brat could want. Leaning forward and pinning the bother with an expressionless face, Tsunade gave permission for the young man to make his requests.

"My lady, my first request is; I would like my opponent from the preliminary rounds of this exam to be considered for promotion to the rank of Chuunin. Though I did defeat her to advance to this round, I acknowledge her skill and believe that Hyuuga Chitose should become a Chuunin. If she is not, I will recommend to the leader of my village that we of the Hidden Jungle Village offer her the honor of being recognized as a Chuunin in our bingo book."

There was uproar among the Hyuuga at the surprise offer. Tsunade nodded as Hinata quelled the noise with a single look. Crossing her arms and assuming a thoughtful pose, Tsunade told the young genin that she'd consider his first request.

"Zaiden of the Hidden Jungle, what is your second request?", asked Tsunade.

"My second request is simple, milady. I request, no, I demand a match with Konoha's Golden Whirlwind Uzumaki Naruto."

Tsunade glared at the bold teenager as the stadium echoed to the voices of the crowd. Raising a hand to quiet the noise from those gathered, Tsunade was about to deny that request when Zaiden turned towards the Jounin in question and spoke.

"Uzumaki Naruto, Golden Whirlwind of Konoha. I have with me, a message from the Land of Spring and Snow. I challenge you to a no holds barred full contact battle. If you do not accept, I will consider you a coward and will destroy this message. If you accept, you will have to prove to me that you are worthy of receiving this message. So Uzumaki, are you a coward or will you fight?"

Of course, Naruto wasn't one to take a challenge and the accusation of cowardice lightly. Before anyone could stop him, the nineteen year old aficionado of all things orange and rameny, had jumped into the arena with a pronounced glare of exponential intensity and stalked towards the one who dared challenge him.

"Give me that message!", said Naruto in a cold voice as he stopped right in front of Zaiden.

"No. I will not. You have yet to show me why you deserve this message.", replied Zaiden

"Give it to me now or I will kill you where you stand!", ordered Naruto with a glare on his face.

"Once again, I say no. You say you will kill me where I stand. The two remaining Uchiha tried to kill me a little over a month ago. And I sent them both home with severe wounds. When I finished with them both Uchiha Itachi and Uchiha Sasuke were near death. By now both of them may be dead. If they are I don't care. The Hyuuga should've eliminated the Uchiha when they broke away from the clan and developed the Sharingan several years before the formation of this village.", retorted Zaiden.

The crowd went silent and Tsunade felt her anger start to boil. It took all of her mental ability to not just jump down to the floor of the arena and pound both of the brats into the ground. Well, that and the gentle hand of Jiraiya as he subtly restrained her with his hand on her arm.

Naruto went stock still as he heard the words of the vanquisher of all three of his students. His mind boggled as it tried to wrestle with the implications of what he'd been told. In a flash that was reminiscent of his impulsive early days, Naruto accepted the challenge with a snarl.

"Not here. We will fight somewhere away from the village so we use every last bit of our power and not harm the innocent.", stated Zaiden calmly.

"_Wait A Goddammed Minute Here!!!_ ", roared Tsunade only to be cut off as the teenager addressed the Kazekage directly.

"Lord Kazekage, Gaara of the Sand. I humbly request that you be the referee for the match between Lord Uzumaki and Myself.", continued Zaiden.

Gaara pondered the request from his seat with his arms crossed over his chest. He knew he was caught between a rock and a hard place. If he agreed then the Hokage would be quite furious with him and Matsuri would probably consign him to the couch for the foreseeable future. If he declined, that would open him up to accusations of weakness and cowardice. However, there was something about the way the teenager had worded his request that peaked Gaara's interest in the young man further. There was something about this kid that worried him. Yet there was something familiar also. Closing his eyes and giving the impression that he was thinking about his response, Gaara tried to remember the last time he was this worried. In a flash, it came to him.

Gaara's eyes snapped open as he realized why Zaiden worried him. In the same instant, he knew the reason why this genin had requested his presence as referee of the match between him and Naruto. Sighing to himself, Gaara rose to his feet.

"Zaiden of the Hidden Jungle, I accept your request to serve as referee for the match between you and Uzumaki Naruto for the same reason you made your request. I will make one rule that it's inviolate for either of you right now. Under no circumstances will either of you kill the other. Once I declare the match as complete. The. Match. Is. Over! Do I make myself clear.", stated Gaara in his quiet yet firm voice.

Both Shinobi acknowledged the stipulation. Naruto turned to his opponent and told him to follow. When the younger man nodded, Naruto disappeared in the signature flash of light that had given him his nickname. Zaiden followed a second later by disappearing in a crash of a sonic boom. Gaara watched for a second before turning to his counterpart and asking with his eyes if he could speak with her privately. Ignoring the look of anger on Tsunade's face and doing the same with the angry intent leaking from his wife behind him, Gaara made his way to the sealed room off the balcony where he and Tsunade could speak without any interruptions and without anyone knowing what he was talking about. Tsunade followed after sharing a look with Jiraiya. Jiraiya nodded and grinned that familiar grin that never failed to get his wife's libido revved up.

As Tsunade left, Jiraiya turned back to the quiet stadium and stated that he'd create a variation to his Bracketolgy Jutsu especially for the match between Naruto and the Genin from Hidden Jungle. Minutes later, there was a streak of sand as the Kazekage made his way to the location his friend had chosen for this battle. Gaara shuddered as he recognized the direction he was heading in.

_** "Of course, he would choose here. In addition to its sentimental value, this is only place where two shinobi with such high power levels can fight all out.", **__thought Gaara as he approached his destination. _

Seeing the two statues that were the landmarks of this place, Gaara looked around. Zaiden was standing on the head of one statue, while Naruto was standing on the head of the other. Nodding to himself as he took his position at the top of the waterfall, using chakra to keep him from sinking, Gaara crossed his arms.

"Naruto of the Hidden Leaf, Zaiden of the Hidden Jungle. I, Gaara, the Godaime Kazekage of the Hidden Sand will referee this match. My stipulations are still in effect. Zaiden are you ready?"

"Yes, Lord Kazekage."

"Naruto, are you ready?"

"I am, Lord Gaara."

Gaara nodded at the acknowledgements from both shinobi. Resettling his arms across his chest, he looked around at the location. Though this was his first time here, he'd heard the legends of the area, and felt the remnants of the chakra of the several ninja who'd fought here. Gaara even knew the name of the area and it shook him to his core.

_The Valley of the End__**.**_

_**&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&**_

As she watched her opponent and her sensei vanish into the distance, Hanabi felt something around her leg. Glancing down at the offending object, she cursed as she recognized the thing Zaiden was holding up earlier.

"_How in the hell did he manage to get that damn garter on my leg?_ I didn't even feel it when he did. Crap!", grumble-screeched Hanabi.

Snapping her mouth closed and crossing her arms over her chest, Hanabi griped that her opponent had managed to do what he'd said he was going to do. Musing about how she was going to repay him for his actions, she didn't realize that her lips were swollen. Until her teammate mentioned it to her in the most roundabout way.

"Hanabi, why are your lips swollen?", questioned Junichi with a sense of trepidation.

"_What?_ _What do you mean my lips are swollen_?", snapped Hanabi as she opened her eyes and focused her angry look on the squirming boy.

Now Junichi wasn't naïve when it came to girls and women. With two Hyuuga kunoichi on his team, he considered himself a bit more knowledgeable about young Hyuuga women than most boys his age. He suspected or knew their moods and how they would react to different things. Unfortunately for Junichi, he had a feeling that he knew what Hanabi's reaction to what he was about to say would be. Deciding that if her reaction played out like he expected, at least he was going to be in the hospital beside the one he loved.

"Ahhh, Hanabi, what I mean is, umm, aahh, your lips look like they've been thoroughly kissed."

At that exact moment, Hanabi remembered Zaiden's last question before the end of their bout. As she did, the faint recollection of a slight caressing pressure on her lips just before the boom of noise that heralded the departure of her former opponent came to her.

"_**Did he…did he do what I think he did??", **__mused Hanabi with a thoughtful look on her face. _

Junichi watched in fear as his teammate's hand slowly came up to her mouth and touched her lips. His fear changed to confusion with a soft smile flitted across Hanabi's face. The confusion changed to worry as a blush reminiscent of another Hyuuga kunoichi from a few years past sped across Hanabi's. With the redness, came realization and Junichi had to be as quick as he could when Hanabi's eyes rolled up into the back of her head and she collapsed in what would be recognized as the other, secondary Kekkei Genkai of the Hyuuga: The Hyuuga-in-love faint (made popular by one Hinata Hyuuga).

"Aww dammit, don't tell me he just gave Hanabi her first kiss and she's starting to like this guy!", growled Junichi as the deadweight of a passed out Hyuuga kunoichi tugged at his freshly healed arm where he'd caught Hanabi to keep her from hitting her head.  
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It had been forty-five days since the end of the Chuunin Exam and Lady Tsunade was nearly overwhelmed with work.

As she reclined in the her private bathtub in the Hokage's Mansion, Tsunade gazed out at the starry night sky while the warm blueberry-scented water did it's job and eased the pains in her tired muscles. Wafting in from the kitchen was the scent of a wonderful dinner being cooked by Jiraiya as their children slept the night away in their cribs.

It had been a trying time after the fight between Naruto and Zaiden. The match had lasted for an hour until Gaara had sent up a flare requesting the immediate dispatch of several medical teams. Not caring about how it looked, Tsunade had jumped out of her box at the arena and had shunshined in the direction of the flare. When she'd arrived, the first thing she saw was the pale face of the shaking Kazekage. She couldn't get any coherent words out of his mouth and turned her attention to the two forms lying on the ground. Tsunade' first reaction had been one of horror.

There was just so much blood that she could feel her phobia returning with a vengeance. Forgoing the usual procedures, Tsunade had asked the first responding medi-nins to take both combatants and shunshin to the emergency branch of the general hospital for immediate surgery. Ultimately, both shinobi had remained in the hospital unconscious for a full week and a half.

A week after Naruto and his opponent had woken up; Tsunade received a not so happy message from Princess Koyuki demanding to know the status of her former guardian Uzumaki. At first Tsunade wondered how Koyuki had found out about it until she remembered that after leaving Konoha, Gaara had to stop in Spring for a short meeting with the princess about her policy of refusing to give the Daimyo of Wind Country a positive answer to his proposal.

Once Tsunade had exhausted her rage, she'd composed an incendiary message to be sent to the Kazekage but refrained from doing so when her husband had written up a report coalescing a lot of information from his many spies forewarning of a possible move by the Daimyo of the Land of Wind to declare war on the Land of Snow if certain conditions weren't met.

"Empress Koyuki ain't gonna marry his son no matter how many gifts and baubles he sends her. She's turned down his request several times already, what makes the spoiled brat think that Koyuki's ever going to change her mind. Hell, with her families' fortune and her earnings from her movies, Koyuki-hime could buy and sell the Land of Wind many times over without even breaking the bank. After myself, Hinata and Hanabi, and Temari; Koyuki is one of the wealthiest women in the world.", mused Tsunade as the warm scented and herbally treated water soothed her jangled nerves and melted her tensions away.

Letting her musings fade away on the gentle breeze, Tsunade closed her eyes and relaxed as she waited for her husband to let her know when the light repast he was preparing would be ready.

_**&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&**_

It was late night in the village of Konohagakure no Sato and the majority of the villagers were either asleep or headed that way.

Over in the shinobi areas like the Hokage's tower, the academy, ANBU Black Ops Headquarters, and Training Ground 44, the third shift of shinobi security specialists were performing their rounds and investigating the dark areas of the village for either a crime or a hostile act against the village. At the former home of the Yondaime Hokage, his son Naruto looked out one of the windows facing the street. Naruto was waiting for the right time to make his departure from the village to start his quest to find Princess Koyuki and once again return her to her rightful home.

In the month or so he'd been out of the hospital after his brutal match with Zaiden of Hidden Jungle, Naruto had read and reread the scroll he presently held in his hands hundreds of times trying to glean a clue from Koyuki's words about her reason to once again pull her infamous disappearing act from Yuki no Kuni. In addition to his reading, Naruto had created and henged several shadow clones and had sent them out to start gathering the supplies he knew he would need for his trip as well as learn every little bit of intelligence he could find about the Land of Snow. After gathering enough supplies and learning additional information about his destination, Naruto started checking the calendar for the perfect night to leave. Tonight was that night.

"Are you completely packed or do you think that you might miss something?", asked his shadowy guest.

"If I don't have it, it isn't important. I'll deal with it when it becomes important.", replied Naruto as he turned to face his guest.

A fading moonlight glinted off of the blades of the pair of machetes the other man carried as his chosen edged weapons. Naruto didn't even blink. The two had a deeper understanding of each other now. Checking his watch before returning his gaze to the empty streets outside, Naruto quirked an eyebrow as he noticed the time and looked at the younger man and commented about his presence.

"Hmm, I thought you'd still be over at the Hyuuga compound receiving the third degree about the style of Jyuken you know. What happened?"

"I got lucky; my eldest sister crashed the conclave and informed me of the goings on of my village in our war against an enemy from the far side of the world. The head of our village has assigned me as a member of one of our infiltration teams. I have to return home immediately so that I can join my team and head out on assignment. Hanabi wasn't happy about it. Ever since the exam, she's been trying to keep me out of the clutches of her fellow kunoichi. Especially Aburame Sayuri; Hanabi-san and Sayuri-san have gotten into a series of fights for my varied affections. I don't know why they're fighting over me like this, I already had to deal with an extremely pissed off elder sister for causing her to postpone her own wedding for so long because I had the family heirloom. I have to leave tonight to keep Sayuri and Hanabi from hurting each other.", commented Zaiden as he examined one of his machetes with a critical eye.

Naruto smothered a laugh. To him, Shino's cousin Sayuri Aburame and his own newly-promoted Tokubetsu Chunin Hanabi Hyuuga were carrying on a similar rivalry as Sakura and Ino. Naruto mentioned as much to Zaiden before grabbing his mission backpack and slipping it over his shoulders and Jounin vest. Turning to the younger shinobi, Naruto saw that he had his own mission bag already situated on his shoulders. Naruto noticed that instead of wearing his bag over his shoulders, Zaiden had secured it to the Chuunin vest he now wore. Extending his hand to the younger ninja, Naruto thanked him for giving him Koyuki's letter and teaching him the two new jutsu's he'd used in their fight.

"Think nothing of it, when my village created the Dome of Protection jutsu, they saw numerous future uses for it. My elder sister Nefari made a copy of the scroll for the Hokage to see if Lady Tsunade can find a way to adapt it for use by medical-nins in the field. The other jutsu is for you-and you alone-to use. If my village hadn't been caught up in this war, the village elders would've made sure that the others like us got their hands on it to add to their arsenal. Unfortunately, we were caught up in a war and Akatsuki went after you and the other containers before we could send out our own ninjas. But remember, the Bijuu manifestation jutsu is one you can't perform on a whim. You have to actually go inside your own mind and fight your bijuu for control. Once your mental battle is finished, then-and only then-will you be able to call upon the link between you to enhance and increase your strength. However, that jutsu demands a high price. If you are willing to pay that price, for a short period of time you will have access to the power of all nine of the Kyuubi no Kitsune's tails.", commented Zaiden in a serious tone of voice.

Naruto nodded as he watched as Zaiden resettled his twin machetes into the stiff canvas sheathes strapped to his thighs. Glancing out the window, the older teenager saw Zaiden's three elder sisters as they stood around waiting for their brother to finish his conversation so the four of them could head out. Turning back to where Zaiden was, Naruto saw that in his second of contemplation the younger ninja had opened the opposite window and jumped out. Bringing his attention back to the window he was in front of, Naruto now saw the group of four as they headed towards the gate that would put them on the path to their village. Resettling his own bag on his shoulders to a more comfortable position, Naruto headed downstairs.

He had an empress to find.

**_&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&_**

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Outside the gates of Konoha, the four shinobi of Hidden Jungle conversed among themselves as they jumped through the trees. The eldest, Nefari, cast a sidelong glance at her brother.

"So, you gave him the message and the scroll for the 'Dome of Protection Jutsu'? Did you give him the other scroll you had?", asked the twenty-seven year old Jounin.

"No, I didn't. He's not ready for it yet. Though Uzumaki is strong; right now the Demon Artic Fox Clan elders believe, and their desert counterparts concur, he's still not strong enough to sign the scroll containing the contract to allow him to summon any of Kyuubi's clansmen and clansvixens. Plus, I don't believe the world at present is ready for the sudden appearance of kitsune bijuus more powerful than Kyuubi. Each of the elders of Kyuubi's clan have nine tails, however, the power in just one of their tails is more than triple that of the power in one of Kyuubi's tails. So, for now, it is better if the son of Konoha's Yellow Flash and Whirlpool's Crimson Cyclone doesn't find out about the other jutsu.", replied Zaiden.

Nefari thought for a moment before nodding in agreement. Though Zaiden was young, he knew instinctively when to talk about certain things and when not to talk about them. Shaking her head and dropping the subject, Nefari listened to the nighttime sounds of the forest. They soothed her as well as kept her alert and aware.

Soon, the minute noise of the four shinobi disappeared as they continued on their journey.

_**&&&&&&&&&&&&**_

In another part of the village, Naruto approached the gate opposite the one Zaiden and his sisters had left through. This gate wasn't as busy as the main gate and attention of the bored low-level Chuunin guard was easily diverted by a shinobi magazine left by the previous shift. The Chuunin's partner was nowhere in sight and Naruto took that to mean that he was 'otherwise occupied'.

A quick use of the substitution jutsu and Naruto switched places with one of the clones he'd created earlier with the express intent to get outside the gates of Konoha and wait for Naruto to arrive. Now outside the gates of his home village and on his way, Naruto took to the trees and started his journey.

When he was several miles away and sure that his departure hadn't been noticed, Naruto took a break and jumped down from his tree highway and went about clearing a small space for him to eat, take inventory of his pack, and rest for a bit. He knew that he had a long journey ahead and not all of it would be using shinobi techniques.

Naruto was midway through his inventory when he felt a familiar chakra signature approaching. Taking a moment to grumble his displeasure, Naruto stood up and faced the direction of the approaching shinobi. When the person was within ten meters of his position, Naruto crossed his arms over his chest and commented.

"Good Evening, Shino."

There was a subtle buzzing noise then the familiar sound of a shinobi landing on the ground after traveling through the trees. In the dim glow from his small ramen preparation fire, Naruto saw the familiar hooded jacket and dark shades of Shino Aburame; one of the Genin Twelve, Rookie Nine, ANBU tracking specialist, and heir to the Aburame Clan of bug users.

The twenty year old tracker gazed at his friend from the academy through the eyeholes of his ANBU mask. From his kikai and his own observational skills, Shino saw that Naruto was setting out on some sort of journey like his sensei Jiraiya of the Sannin.

_**"That is odd. There was no mention of any upcoming missions needing Uzumaki's expertise on the ANBU mission boards when I left on this mission three weeks ago. In fact, due to the injuries he'd sustained during his fight with that Genin from the Hidden Unnamed Village, Tsunade-sama had specifically ordered him to take it easy and had taken him off of all ANBU missions. What is going on here.", **__ran the thoughts through Shino's logical mind. _

"Uzumaki.", answered Shino quietly as he slipped his mask off and put his hands in his pockets.

Naruto waited to see if his friend was going to say anything else. When it became apparent that Shino was going to be his usual quiet self, Naruto sighed and went back to inventorying his pack. Finishing that, Naruto turned back around to face his friend. The ANBU operative was still standing in his place waiting for an explanation for why he was out of the village when he wasn't scheduled for any missions and was supposed to be on a Hokage ordered stand down.

"Well Shino, I have to be going. I have places to go, things to do, and people to see.", chirruped Naruto as he shrugged his pack back on to his shoulders and cinched the straps down tight so that it wouldn't shift and make noise as he traveled.

"Naruto, what are you doing outside of the village? If I remember correctly, you are supposed to be at home on a medical stand down. Do I need to send one of my clones to Lady Hokage's residence to find out if you have been put back on active status and are on a mission? You know how Lady Hokage dislikes to be disturbed at home this late at night.", Shino commented idly as he continued to observe his friend.

Naruto whirled around to face Shino with a displeased expression on his face. Unfortunately for him, Shino was not intimidated in the least and just crossed his arms over his chest while listening to his kikai as they nervously moved in and out of his body.

_**"Damn, this is not good. Unlike some of the others, Shino is not intimidated by anything I do. If I give him the chance, he's going to stand there until he gets an explanation. I can't lie to him because those damn kikai of his would know in an instant and before I know it, Shino would be on his way to baa-chan's place. Crap, crap, crap, crap...", **__fumed our protagonist as he tried to come up with a plan to get him out of this predicament. _

In the back of his mind, something flickered at the edge of Naruto's consciousness. Something that he'd heard in passing while hanging out with the rest of the Konoha Party Boy Posse. The four of them had been at the private pub Jiraiya had had built in the basement of a nondescript building near ANBU Headquarters. There had been several male shinobi hanging out in the place that night. Naruto, Shikamaru, Chouji, and Kiba had all returned from their separate missions quite late and wanted to quaff a few beers and some sake after turning in their mission reports and just wanting to fellowship for a bit before calling it a night.

Of course, after three beers and a bottle of sake, Shika and Chouji were pretty much out of it while Kiba was slowly approaching his limits. For his part Naruto was still sober. The quartet had been about to leave when Shino had entered the joint and pulled up a stool at the bar next to his teammate from his Genin days and ordered a magnum bottle of fermented juice and a cold glass.

Naruto remembered the night pretty well because it was the first time he'd ever seen Shino partake of something remotely intoxicating. Shino had filled his cup and downed quickly before almost slamming the glass on the bar and refilling it. Kiba had looked at Naruto with a worried look before turning to his old teammate to ask if something was wrong. It had taken three bottles and several tries before Shino was convinced to reluctantly divulge what had brought on his actions.

It turns out that Shino was frustrated because his clan was subtly pressuring him to find a romantic match.

_**&&&&&&&&&&&**_

While Naruto was trying to figure out how to use the freshly remembered information about Shino to his advantage, the princess he had set out to find was busy with some routine paperwork before allowing her council to be recessed for the winter.

Sitting in her chair and gazing at the rapidly falling snow, Princess Koyuki sighed in resignation. With the weather getting worse day by day (and sometimes hour by hour), there was a controlled yet subtle panic filtering through the members of her council. During the meeting two hours previous, Koyuki had sensed the fear permeating the quiet men and women as they cast worried glances towards the windows when they thought their empress wasn't paying attention.

Allowing the council to slide on their actions, Koyuki had brought the meeting to a close and had gone ahead and recessed the council for the winter. Within minutes of her dismissal, the council chambers had been almost empty except for the few elderly members who couldn't move as fast as some of their counterparts and those members who had business with the princess.

Koyuki couldn't blame the council for worrying as they did. She was worried about the worsening weather as well. Koyuki just hid her worries better though they continued to linger in the back of her mind long after the last council members had departed the chamber in the presence of Shinobi from the Hidden Snow Village. Leaning back in her seat and gazing out the window, Koyuki bridged her hands in front of her face. She suspected that the shinobi representatives at the meeting had figured out that their daimyo was more concerned about the storm they she was letting on. Koyuki's suspicions had been confirmed when after the last councilors had left the head shinobi representative had approached Koyuki in her office and reassured her that regardless how bad the weather was going to get, Koyuki could count on her shinobi forces to always do their duty.

_**"If this horrid weather continues, how will my knight of crimson and gold endure? I know he's dealt with snowstorms before but this blizzard is different. The rage of the Ice Maiden, Sode no Shirayuki is not to be trifled with. Even the hardiest snow shinobi quail in fear when the icy cold breath of Hyorinamru roars out of the North; they know that those winds signify that the ice maidens' anger is rising. What should I do?", **__thought Koyuki as she shivered from a chill that was either real, imagined, or both._

Coming to a decision, Koyuki turned back to her desk and called for her shinobi bodyguards. The two Jounin were there before she could blink. Rolling up the scroll she'd been working on, Koyuki ordered the two masked ninja to gather her ladies in waiting and to start preparations for shuttering the castle for the winter.

"Once my ladies in waiting have arrived here, I want you to make preparations to move them to their winter residences. With the council in recess and this storm getting worse, I'd rather my court be with their families and loved ones this winter instead of here in the palace. Though this palace was built to withstand the worse the Ice Maiden of the North, Sode no Shirayuki could throw at it; it is my duty as daimyo to look out for the safety of my people. Gather as many of your fellow shinobi that can be spared, preferably of Chuunin and Tokubetsu Jounin ranks, and escort the ladies of my court to their homes. For the first time in the history of our land, I'm recessing the court of the Land of Snow.", stated Koyuki firmly as she padded around the office gathering important scrolls and placing them in a special traveling case.

"Yes milady. We shall carry out your orders at once.", replied the senior bodyguard before both disappeared with a shunshin.

Koyuki waited for the shinobi to inform her eight court ladies of her summons. She figured it would take awhile since Koyuki had given the eight women leave to perform their other duties while she was with the council. Surprisingly, only twenty minutes had passed when the last of her eight ladies in waiting came through the door to the office. Once glance at the eight women ranging from their late teens to their early thirties, and Koyuki knew that the women had been expecting this particular summons.

After casting a subtly evil glance at her manager, Misato, that the other seven women either ignored or did not see, Koyuki informed the eight of her intentions to recess the court and excuse the ladies from their present duties for the next few months. There were gasps of shock and some sadness but the women understood why their mistress was taking such drastic actions at this time. For those that didn't quite completely understand, their attention was directed to the blizzard blowing outside the princess' office window.

When she finished speaking, Koyuki watched as her court returned to their chambers to make preparations for departing the palace. The Empress of Yuki no Kuni knew that the winter homes of her ladies were scattered around the vast country in the capital cities of their respective home prefectures and that it would take at least a week before the lady representing the farthest prefecture from Koyuki's court would arrive home. Wishing each lady the best in their travels as they passed by her position standing by the main door to the palace, Koyuki bid each of her ladies a friendly farewell with hope that they would return in good health to represent their regions again once the weather had eased. Some of the women were stoic, others depressed, and still others were in tears but they knew that their empress had only their best interests in her heart. Many promised to return to the palace the minute it was safe for travel.

Once the members of her court had been escorted to the carriages that awaited them, Koyuki turned to the escorting Snow Ninja and gave them orders to safely lead each of the eight expeditions to their intended destinations and expedite their return to the capital. As each team of six Chuunin and its Tokubetsu Jounin leader acknowledged and exited to carry out their orders, Koyuki felt a sense of calm foreboding and unease. Shaking it off, the princess conversed with the Jounin in charge of the arrangements and directed him to have the expeditions that had to travel the farthest depart first with each remaining expedition departing at hourly intervals.

After observing the last of the carriages carrying her court ladies leave, Koyuki stiffened her resolve and called for the Yukikage. When the middle-aged shinobi appeared, Koyuki was writing on a scroll. Finishing her work, she signaled for the older man to wait while she summoned one of her imperial messengers. The messenger arrived within minutes.

"Messenger, the sealed scroll in front of you is to be delivered to the embassy where the honorable son of the Wind Daimyo is staying. In it, is a message from me to him expressing my regrets that I have not been able to meet with him during his visit this time. It also again expresses my refusal to consider his proposal of marriage and informs him that I will not give him permission to court me. I wish this message to be delivered within the next few days. However, you are forbidden from departing until the Yukikage assigns four of Yukigakure no Sato's best high level Jounins are your escort.", stated Koyuki in an imperial tone of voice.

"Yes milady. I will do as I am bid.", replied the messenger as he bowed.

With an acknowledging wave of her hand, Koyuki dismissed the messenger after giving him some last minute instructions. Once he was gone, the twenty-five year old empress turned to the Kage of the Shinobi Village in her realm.

"Lord Yukikage, take your time in assigning those Jounins to that messenger. I want to be out of the palace and on my way back to my winter chalet in the northernmost small village of Yuki no Kuni before that repulsively boorish man receives that message. By the time that coward decides to respond, probably after scratching his balls in confusion, asking one of his servants what it means, realizing I am again refusing him, and passing on the message to his equally boorish father I hope to be happily ensconced in my little chalet with no hope of receiving _ANY_ messages from anybody before the end of this winter. The Jounin you assign will be there to deter his minions from 'expressing' any sort of unhealthy adventurism on the part of the daimyo's son. In fact, make the Jounin you assign our top kunoichi. That should show the dipshit that this is my final refusal. If he bitches, and I know he will, use one of our homing Snow Owls to send me a message explaining to me what his response was.", commented Koyuki as she stood in front of her office window and watched the snow fall harder and faster.

"Yes your Excellency, I will do as you wish.", replied the Yukikage.

Koyuki heard the unsuccessfully hidden questioning tone in his voice and turned to face him with a lifted eyebrow. Seeing that she was giving him leave to speak freely, the Kage of the Hidden Snow Village continued.

"Excellency, if I may ask, why are you leaving the palace to travel such a long distance this winter? With your twelve and the Shinobi of the Hidden Snow, we can protect you from all harm."

"If that fat bastard finds out that I've recessed both the council and the court for the winter and am still here, the slob would make it his damn duty to try and be here every day with his pitifully pathetic attempts to woo me. Unfortunately some of my blasted council would support him. That is why I recessed them and sent them away. The other reason why I am leaving the palace is because I just want to be out of the area when the message I know is coming from the Daimyo if The Land of Wind arrives. I can't answer it if I'm not here right?"

"I understand milady. I will do as you order.", replied the Snow Shadow after a moments reflection to her question.

Koyuki nodded as the light of realization and understanding glowed in the aged eyes of the leader of the Shinobi of the Hidden Snow. Clasping her hands behind her back, the Empress of the Land of Snow gave the older man instructions to make the team of shinobi who traveled part of the way with her to her winter chalet ready for departure in one week when those she sent out on the expeditions to escort her court to their respective winter homes returned. Koyuki also told her Yukikage that he should not worry about her right now. He needed to focus on his concern on those of his village.

"About the Snow Academy for Shinobi and Kunoichi, shift the students and instructors to a half day schedule and start the machinations to pre-sort them into teams of Genin. Shuffle the students around until each team is perfectly balanced. This may take the rest of the academy year but you have the time to do so. For now I would like to see all of the students make it as shinobi when they graduate however, I know that some may not make it. I would like tutors to be assigned to those on the verge of not passing. They will be given the chance to become Genin of the Hidden Snow."

The Yukikage nodded and added her directives about the academy to his notepad before closing it and sealing it away. After asking if there was anything else she would like to add and receiving a negative answer, the forty-five year old man bowed deeply at the waist before being given his leave to carry out the orders of his empress. Once the door had shut behind her signifying the departure of the Snow Shadow, Koyuki sighed before dropping into her desk chair and resting her hands on the desk. Right now she was for all extent somewhat helpless to do anything except watch and wait for her expeditions to return to the palace.

Letting her eyes idly roam over her desk for no reason, Koyuki found the personal letter from Priestess Shion of Demon Country that had arrived some time ago. Busy with her council and obstructing some of their plans, fending off the unwanted advances from the Prince of the Land of Wind, setting up the medical waystations for travelers through her land who had no sense of danger, and the other minutia that went along with running her own country; Koyuki hadn't gotten around to reading the letter from her friend and occasional confidante in all things womanly.

_**"I wonder how Shion is doing. Last time we talked in person Shion mentioned that she had found a suitable suitor to give her what she needed to continue her family line of priestesses.", **__thought Koyuki as she reached out and pulled the letter over. _

Opening the letter scroll that had the wax seal of the Priestess of the Land of Demons and recognizing her friends whimsical writing style as well as the informal girlish tone of one writing to a friend instead of the stilted and formal tone from one of such high standing writing to another of equal or greater standing, Koyuki chuckled as an image of Shion resting on her stomach lazily waving her legs about as she put her words down floated through her mind. During her previous six month tour of duty as Empress, Koyuki had had to travel to the court of the Daimyo of the Land of Demons for a meeting to discuss a trade alliance between The Land of Spring and Snow and the Land of Demons to help strengthen the industrial ties for both countries. Priestess Shion had been there to perform a cleansing ritual at the meeting site and the two had hit it off after dinner that evening as they talked about their mutual orange-wearing acquaintance. Koyuki and Shion had talked far into the night about their differing adventures with the most hyperactive and unpredictable ninja of the Hidden Leaf Village.

At the end of the two-week long meeting, Shion and Koyuki had parted as best of friends with promises to keep in touch with each other by letter. It was a most enjoyable friendship and the letters between them kept them abreast of the goings on in each others lives. Shion had even made a surprise informal visit to the Palace of Spring and Snow as well as one of the locations where Yukie had been filming one of her movies. Returning her mind to the letter in her hand, Koyuki read that Shion had indeed become pregnant and was-at the time of her writing of this letter-maybe four or five months along and under strict medical care as well as presently residing in a secure location she couldn't tell Koyuki about.

It was early evening when Koyuki finally finished Shion's letter. Again cursing her friend for her slightly annoying habit of writing insufferably long letters when writing to friends, Koyuki used her hands to massage her aching back. Looking up, the empress noticed that the lights in her office had been brightened and her curtains had been closed by one of the shinobi assigned as a servant due to recently sustained injuries while Koyuki had been sitting there reading. She vaguely remembered waving the servant in to take care of such things while engrossed in Shion's hilarious retelling of an incident that involved one of her temple guards, one of the maidens from the Daimyo's court, and a rarely used storage room at the temple.

"On one hand we have Shion: nineteen years old, priestess of her land ever since she was young. Now she's pregnant with her first child, which more than likely will be a daughter to carry on as priestess when Shion steps down. On the other hand we have me: twenty-five years old, no husband, no children, and no present prospects. An actress who ran away from her village and position as princess when I was younger only to return with the help of one teenage boy who doesn't give up and always tries to keep his promises. No wonder half of my council want me to marry that fat prince. They consider me an old maid. Bah, screw them. I am my own woman! Do they not realize that the Godaime Hokage did not marry until she was nearly sixty? Hell, I bet they haven't heard the rumors that the Godaime Mizukage is 'supposedly' seeking a relationship with the new Raikage! Who just happens to be the younger brother of the previous Raikage? And she's nearing forty. I will be so happy when those old conservatives retire and are replaced by younger and more qualified people.", griped Koyuki as she slammed a delicate fist on the desk in a fit of frustration.

Hearing her stomach growl, Koyuki left her office and headed to the kitchen to fix herself something to eat. She hadn't eaten since lunch and it was still a few hours away from dinner. In the kitchen, as she pulled preparations for a sandwich out of the fridge Koyuki wondered if she should go ahead and raid the pantry for the large bag of potato chips she'd spotted earlier or not. In the end, she decided that irritating the cook was a fair trade and grabbed the bag from the pantry.

Carrying the bag over to the counter where the loaf of bread and the fillings for her sandwiches waited (Koyuki had decided to fix more than one sandwich. She was hungry damnit!), the empress opened the bag and deposited several handfuls of snack food goodness on the platter she'd liberated from a handy cabinet and proceeded to make several turkey and cheese sandwiches. When she finished her preparations, several sandwiches shared the plate with the chips. Replacing the meat and bread in their proper places, Koyuki glanced at the bag and debated whether or not to return the half-empty bag to the pantry. Shaking her head and grinning, she decided to go ahead and finish the chips in her office. Stepping over to another cabinet, the Empress of Yuki no Kuni saw a large bottle of juice and snatched it to wash down her meal.

Returning to her office, Koyuki dimmed the lights and opened the curtains just a bit so she could see outside as she ate. Propping her feet up on a handy footstool and leaning back in her seat, Koyuki started to eat. As she dined on her frugal meal, Yukie caught an occasional glimpse of color as some of her subjects made their way through the howling winds, bone-chilling cold, and driving snow to take care of business or as they returned to the warmth of home and loved ones. Musing over what could be in her future, Koyuki let her mind wander.

_**-&-&-&-&-&-**_

A few hours later, Koyuki sat relaxing in her bath as the concerns for her people returned. Shunting them off to the side for now, she looked around the large tub and imagined different scenarios where it played a prominent part. A remembered scene from a previous copy of Master Jiraiya's Icha Icha series involving a tub, some sake, and quiet music made her blush with embarrassment sped through her mind. It was supplanted by a scene involving two children playing around as she gently chastised them through a loving smile.

Taking a sip from the mug of tea sitting on the side of the tub, Koyuki wondered if that was her much hoped for future. Glancing at the clock and seeing that it was nearing nine pm, the empress rose to her feet and let the water that had beaded on her skin cascade down her body. Delicately stepping from the tub to the warm mat, she reached for a towel to dry off. Once she was dry and had her towel wrapped securely around her naked body, Koyuki knelt down and pulled the stopper allowing the tub to drain of the now lukewarm water. Promising herself that she would clean it out later, Koyuki stepped from the bathroom and into her dressing room. Discarding the towel, she made her way over to a dresser where her undergarments were and retrieved a pair of feminine boxer shorts from the top drawer.

Before slipping the shorts up over her legs, Koyuki gazed at her figure in the full length mirror and assessed what she saw. Nodding in approval, she pulled the underwear on and returned to the drawer to find a top. Deciding to go to bed without a bra, Koyuki found a suitable t-shirt and slipped it over her head. As she entered her bedroom, Koyuki lifted the warm sleeping robe from its hanger, slipped it on, and loosely secured it with the provided belt. Moving over to another dresser, she retrieved a pair of thick calf-length socks and pulled them over her feet to ward off the night chill as she slept.

Giving the room a once over glance to make sure that everything was in its place, Koyuki climbed into her bed and slipped between the sheets and blanket before dousing the candle and letting the room fall into darkness with only the dim light from the softly glowing half-moon outside to illuminate the sleeping chambers of one of the five most powerful women in the world. Cuddling up with a stuffed polar bear and closing her eyes, Kazahana Koyuki, Empress of Yuki no Kuni drifted off into dreamland.

_**&&&&&&**_

Two weeks had passed since Koyuki Kazahana had recessed her court and sent her ladies-in-waiting home to their respective provinces and prefectures under shinobi escort. Three days ago, the last of the shinobi on those expeditions had returned and reported that their missions had been accomplished with minimal trouble. The ninja had returned to find the palace in the midst of organized chaos as some of the palace servants packed up the several of the empresses' belongings for her move to her winter chalet.

As another group of shinobi approached with more reports, a frazzled Koyuki directed traffic into and out of her suite of private rooms as the things she was taking with her were packed away and carried out while the things she was leaving were sealed into storage scrolls. She'd already gotten into one argument with her private tailor about what she was going to be wearing on this trip and another one with her charge d'affairs about some inconsequential thing. Both had been suitably humiliated when a pissed off empress in the midst of a biological 'rage' had tossed the offending gentleman out of a window that was presently being repaired by a team of retired shinobi glassmakers who had been called in to replace the frosted glass.

_**"Of all the….dammit, not more reports!!! Shit, why don't they just report to the Yukikage and he'll inform me about this before I head out!!!"**__, griped an obviously irritated and discomforted Kazahana. _

Warning the approaching ninja with a frigid glare that had them hurriedly changing their direction, Koyuki again growled at the bandages chafing her chest. One of her more senior maids had insisted that instead of wearing one of the sports bras Koyuki preferred to travel in, the empress should bind her breasts so as not to give the escorting shinobi any lustful ideas. Of course that had gone over real well with Koyuki and the resulting argument had nearly degenerated into a catfight. The kunoichi in the room at the time had started to mentally make bets on whether the maid would get Koyuki's assets wrapped or whether the princess would punt the maid out the door. Odds had been going 8 to 1 against Koyuki until things had been resolved. The empress really hated having her breasts bound when wearing regular clothes, even though she suffered through that particular indignity when being dressed in her imperial robes.

Deciding to take a break and allow the chaos to continue without her for a bit, Koyuki pointed at a one of the bystanders who seemed to know what was going on and assigned the luckless person as 'supervisor' with a glare and a set of hurried instructions to '_keep everything moving smoothly and not screw up, less he anger the empress'',_ before exiting her rooms and moving towards the window at the far end of the hallway. There, Koyuki pressed her forehead against the chilly glass and watchedas some bundled up children were outside playing during this lull in the nasty winter storm that had been blasting her land with the angry frozen breath of Hyorinmaru the Ice Dragon as it screamed from the North heralding the continued buildup of the ice maiden's rage. Sighing to herself, Koyuki felt a longing to be out there with the children as they played in the snow letting their glee permeate those in close proximity.

Continuing her observations, the twenty-five year old saw that many of the teenagers and young adults slowly moving around the village enjoying this extremely rare calm day were doing so with their significant others. To the right, there was an older couple sitting on one of the benches watching the children play, the man had his arm around his wife's neck and shoulders as she leaned in his arms with her head on his coat. Across from them another, younger couple happily and lovingly tossed snowballs at each other while their friends laughed and occasionally joined in with the festivities. On their cheeks, Koyuki could see the slight redness brought about by the crisply chilly air as they played and enjoyed the break in the weather though knowing that after today they would back in their homes as the storm raced over the land once again. Koyuki was so lost in thought that she didn't realize how long she'd been standing by that window until a soft tap on her shoulder got her attention.

"Excuse me Kazahana-hime but the packing is nearly finished and the workers were wondering if you would give them leave to return to their homes and loved ones so they could enjoy the remainder of this day?", asked a Chuunin press-ganged into being her aide for the day.

"Hmm, what?? Oh yes, release them from their duties and tell them that I greatly appreciate their help for today. Inform them that they can expect a substantial bonus for their work today. I know that with today being a rarely calm day, they would've rather been enjoying it with their families and loved ones instead of helping me pack for the trip to my winter chalet.", replied the empress as she stretched and pushed away from the wall she'd been leaning against while watching the future of her land play in the pristine white snow outside.

The Chuunin nodded and bowed before turning around and heading back up the hallway to pass her words on to those who needed to hear them. Koyuki watched the young man for a moment before taking a last look out the window and returning to her room, she still had to finish dressing for the trip.

A couple of hours later, Koyuki looked around her office and nodded in satisfaction. All of the classified papers she wasn't taking with her were sealed in scrolls and secured in one of the various safes scattered around the room depending on their level of classification. Her desk work area was devoid of the mess that was usually present and the dark wood gleamed from being recently polished. The floor was clean, the trash can empty; the discarded papers that were classified 'Daimyo's Eyes Only' had been both shredded and burned. Continuing her perusal, the office occupant saw that the closet where several of her clothes were kept was locked up tight; the window behind her desk was sealed shut with a fuinjutsu and covered with a thick set of curtains. Again nodding in satisfaction, Koyuki reached down and opened the top drawer of her desk. After a short search, she found what she had been looking for and pulled it out. Setting the object (a plain look box with a simple clasp to keep it closed), Koyuki gazed at the two objects nestled in the velvet lined interior.

The first object she pulled out was talisman of her office, a white gold ring with the Kazahana Family Seal engraved within the metal. This ring, when dipped in wax and applied to her documents, designated those papers as official documents. Koyuki was only allowed to use this ring within the confines of her office with only two witnesses in attendance; a shinobi from Yukigakure (usually the Yukikage) and the senior-most member of her council. The only documents that needed Koyuki's official seal were Treaties of Alliance, Declarations of War, and papers destined for her counterparts. Those papers also needed her signature to make them official. All other, less-sensitive documents, were sealed with a seal designed specifically for Koyuki and were sealed with a wax that was two levels below the wax for the more important documents.

After slipping the ring on one of her fingers, Koyuki reached in to the box again. This time she retrieved one of the most famous artifacts in all of the lands. The last gift she received from her father all those years oh so long ago.

The Hex Crystal.

With its simple and common rope and its lavender color, The Hex Crystal didn't look like nothing special. If one didn't know its secret, one would assume it was just a piece of jewelry given to her by a long departed costar or an heirloom from her mother. However, for those that new the true reason of the Hex Crystal, they would say that it ranked second only to the necklace of the Shodaime Hokage of Konohagakure no Sato in worth.

In her 25 years on Earth, Koyuki knew of two major battles that had been fought for possession of the small crystal. The resulting loss of life resulting from those battles saddened the empress at the pettiness those corrupted by greed and power would go through to possess something so unassuming. Yet at the same time, Koyuki knew that if the power of her Hex Crystal to bring spring to the Land of Snow by activating the heat generators in the Rainbow Glacier fell in to the wrong hands, things would be much worse.

Usually, The Hex Crystal never left Koyuki's neck. Today, however, she had taken it off this morning and placed it in her desk because she knew that since it shared the box with the royal seal, Koyuki would have to return to the office to retrieve the crystal before she left and thus at the same time she would remember to grab the ring from the same location. Slipping the Hex Crystal over her head and letting it sit in its usual location in the valley of her breasts as the chain hung from around her neck, Koyuki nodded. Now she was ready to leave the office.

Rising from her chair, Koyuki turned to where her jacket hung. Slipping it on over the long sleeve sweater she wore on top of the two shirts she was wearing, Koyuki zipped the jacket closed and allowed its fur-lined hood to rest on her shoulders. Exiting the office with one last glance, Koyuki closed and locked the door before stepping back and allowing the two Snow shinobi seal specialists to do their job and seal the door. Placing her hand on the center of the door when prompted, Koyuki channeled the little bit of chakra she did have into the array inked onto the door so that it would only open for her when she returned after her winter retreat. The sealing pulsed once before fading from view and Koyuki removed her hand.

"Kazahana-hime, I report that your office has been correctly sealed and is now secure.", reported the shinobi to her right after her tested the seals and read the words that glowed briefly in the door forbidding anyone from attempting to open it.

Acknowledging the report with a nod and a smile, Koyuki glanced at the door once before turning on her heel and striding for the front of the palace. With the varying levels of security on her office door, she knew that her office was secure. From the midlevel Genjutsu applied to by the seal to make the door look unassuming to the high-level Raiton Jutsu that critically wounded a persistent spy allowing him or her to be captured for interrogation, the office of The Daimyo of the Land of Spring and Snow was secure.

Padding towards the front of her home in her white and grey winter boots, Koyuki acknowledged those who were remaining here just in case a wing of her palace needed to be opened up for refugees from the Rage of Sode no Shirayuki , the ice maiden. When she reached the front door where the shinobi who were escorting her halfway to her destination waited with the horses, Koyuki stopped and gazed at the hardy steeds. Now these weren't your usual breed of horses, these were horses specifically bred and trained to work in the coldest of winters. With extra thick hair covering their bodies so they seems somewhat shaggy to strong legs that rarely fatigued. With their tall size and massive chests that allowed them to bulldoze through all but the highest of snow drifts, these sure-footed draft horses were ready made for traveling during the harsh winters. If during the trip, the worst were to happen to Koyuki and her companions, the horses could be euthanized and their bellies (once opened) could be used to keep the travelers warm till rescue arrived. Though some would see it as a cruelty to mercifully kill such majestic beasts, it was generally considered a successful last ditch survival device. There were so many stories of such actions passed around at the pubs and taverns scattered around her land, that Koyuki had no reason to not believe the tales.

Stepping down off of the front porch, Koyuki went over to her horse, a gleaming black mare that snorted as her rider arrived. Standing a head or two beneath the massive beast, Koyuki placed her ungloved hands on the horses' side and proceeded to give the occasionally stubborn mare a gentle scratch. Through the thick skin and hair, Koyuki could feel the sense of enjoyment from her steed and giggled. She loved riding this particular horse during the winter and her horse loved being ridden. Finishing her bonding, Koyuki strolled over and conversed with her escorts for a moment. Once that was done, she donned her gloves, slipped her hood over her head and cinched it down before making her way around to her horses left side and being helped into the saddle. Once securely situated, Koyuki leaned over and accepted the traveling pack being passed to her and put it on her shoulders. Looking behind her, the empress could see the other heavily loaded horses in her group.

Frowning at one of the smaller horses that looked to be overloaded, Koyuki told the rider to lighten his load and bring the excess to her horse where it could be strapped down. Since her horse was bigger and stronger than the horse in question, Koyuki knew that the mare wouldn't be affected by the increase in weight. In fact, the extra weight would help stabilize the horse and rider in some places of the trail. Nodding again, Koyuki looked around one last time.

"Is everybody ready? Are all of the pack straps tight? Do we have everything we need for this trip? We do, well then have everyone mount up. Its starting to get dark and I want to be well on our way before the capital city gets slammed by bad weather again. Hey you, honorable Jounin, make damn sure everyone has their snow goggles on, I don't want any of them getting snow blindness on this trip! Has the Snow Priestess blessed our caravan and prayed for our safe journey? Alright, then I take it we are ready.", shouted Koyuki as she watched the members get situated.

Nodding to the expedition leader to take charge and get everyone moving, Koyuki hitched her reigns up and mumbled soothing words to her mount and patted her neck. Sitting up in her saddle, the empress shifted her attention to the man on the lead horse. Seeing that the forward scouts and outriders were now starting to trot towards the edge of the city to take up their duties, Koyuki trembled in excitement. Things were finally starting to go her way. The burden and stress that had been her constant companions for the past few weeks started to melt away as the expedition leader gave the signal for the main body of the caravan to move out. With the first steps her mare took in the hard packed snow as they started their journey, those stresses and burdens disappeared and her shoulders started to feel lighter with every step her horse took.

Her horse sensed Koyuki's increasingly positive emotions and started to increase her pace. Koyuki felt the increase and her smile got bigger and bigger. By the time the caravan turned on to the main street leading out the city, Koyuki had lowered her hood and was enjoying the cool air as it blew across her face. Opening her eyes, she saw that crowds had gathered to watch her departure and were cheering and shouting their happiness as their empress made her way down the street. In return the members of the caravan, who could, waved back and acknowledged the cheers from the crowds that were growing larger and larger as word got around.

In the midst of the joyous tumult, the shinobi leader of the expedition looked at his number two and nodded. Receiving a silent nod in return, the leader rose up in his saddle and looked back at the horses behind him, waving his hands and catching the attention of the other riders, he gave a few hand signs informing the others that they were going to circle the center of the city one time to allow the people to see their queen. The others acknowledged with signs of their own and then passed the message on back. As they started to circle around, the expeditions vice leader got a hint of inspiration and leaned over and whispered his idea to the expedition leader. Behind his mask, the leader grinned and agreed. Once more turning in his saddle to face those behind, he passed the idea on to the others. Receiving acknowledgments back in support of the vice-leader's plan, the leader halted his horse and got him to side step a bit.

Not knowing the expedition leader's plan, Koyuki just sat back and enjoyed the cheers with a smile on her face. She started a moment when the line of horses turned to circle the city center but realized what was going on and just flowed with the moment. Letting the events of the day and the happiness of her people relax her further, Koyuki was surprised to notice that the leader of the expedition was suddenly riding beside her. Since she hadn't seen the flurry of hand signs passed around by the riders, she wondered what was going on. She was extremely surprised when the leader gave her a salute before starting to speak.

"Milady, the caravan is in formation. Would you do us and the crowd the honor of leading us out of the city?", asked the shinobi as he held his salute.

Koyuki was taken aback and whirled around in her saddle. Sure enough as soon as her eyes were able to focus behind her, Koyuki saw the caravan had indeed formed up. Now the caravan's horses were marching cavalry style, two by two. Turning back to the front to chastise the expedition leader, Koyuki allowed those words to fall from her lips unspoken as her subconscious mind allowed her to hear the upswing in cheers from the crowd as the horses had fallen into alignment with her at its head and the expedition leader and vice-leader riding slightly behind her. With a gleam in her eyes that promised of minor retribution later, Koyuki returned the salute of the shinobi and nodded as she moved her horse slightly ahead of the rest and centered in between the leader and vice-leader. As she did so, Koyuki heard a whistle blow behind her and turned to ask about it. In the midst of her turn, out of the corner of her eye, Koyuki caught a glimpse of the tautly waving banner of the Kazahana Family snapping in the wind. The staff the banner was securely attached to was being held by the expeditions' vice-leader in his right hand while his left smartly guided his horse. Sighing to herself, Koyuki happily resigned herself to the show of loyalty and allowed this moment in time to take her away.

As the caravan approached the center of her capital one last time, Koyuki looked to her right and saw one of the repaired and updated orphanages. Coming closer to the building in question, the sight she saw nearly brought tears to her eyes. There waiting on the porch for the parade (and by now it was a parade) to pass by were several of the orphans cheering wildly for the one who had ordered her shinobi to repair, winterize, and upgrade their home for the children. Standing with the children were the many kindly chaperones that watched over the children and made sure they got everything they needed to grow up healthy and with the love and care they deserved.

Letting gentle eye roam over the group of children, Koyuki lifted an eyebrow as she caught sight of one little girl, no more than seven or eight years old standing with the chaperones and holding a bouquet of origami flowers while wearing a kimono ill-suited for the weather. On a whim, Koyuki halted her horse. As the formation came to an orderly stop behind her, Koyuki dismounted her horse, stepped over to the expedition vice-leader and took the staff bearing her royal banner out of his hand. With the banner in her hand, Koyuki stepped over towards the little girl and knelt on one knee.

Smiling at the shy child who blushed and hid her head behind the leg of her chaperone; Koyuki detached the banner from the staff and spoke to the girl.

"Little one standing out here in this cold air, will you do me a favor?", asked Koyuki in a soft and friendly tone of voice.

Seeing the shy nod, Koyuki gently wrapped the banner around the child and saw that her slight shivering started to slow, the empress continued with her gently request.

"Will you take this banner and watch over it for me while I am away? It is a very important banner and it needs a very important person to watch over it while I can not. Are you that important person? Will you watch over and protect this banner? This banner is a special banner; it only allows those it thinks are special to watch over it. Are you and your friends special enough to watch over this banner?", asked Koyuki while enfolding the little girl in a hug.

"Yes Koyuki-hime, I will watch over this banner with all of my heart and soul. I will make sure your banner is safe.", replied the girl in a quiet and shy voice.

"What is your name, protector of my banner?"

"My name is Yukiko, Kazahana-hime. Hasegawa Yukiko."

"Yukiko-Hime, thank you for performing this favor for me, our land greatly appreciates the task you have taken on to watch over our flag. When I return, with all my heart, I promise to honor you and your friends properly. Little one, before I depart I want you to do me one last favor? After all of the horses have departed, please little one, promise me you'll go inside and warm up. I do not want you and your friends falling ill."

The little girl nodded and smiled shyly. Looking up at the staff member holding her hand, she received a supportive nod. Shyly stepping away from the older woman, Yukiko hesitantly gave Koyuki the bouquet of flowers and told the empress that she had made them herself with the a little help from the matrons. Koyuki accepted the bouquet and thanked the girl with a kiss to her forehead before she wished the children and staff the best for the rest of the winter. Before she was assisted in remounting her horse, Koyuki took one of the flowers from the bouquet and placed it in the child's hair while telling her that they could have all the hot cocoa they wanted for the rest of the day.

Once back on her horse and situated in her saddle with the bouquet nestled in her hands, Koyuki gave the children and wave and a smile before getting her mare moving. Glancing back at the orphanage as it receded behind her, she could see the one child, whose heart she had touched and acknowledged standing there waving her little hands. When it finally passed out of her sight, Koyuki returned her attention to the front and saw that they were approaching the road out of the city.

_**"Now finally, my trip begins in earnest!! What awaits me at the end of this voyage; that I wonder. Yes I do."**__, Koyuki thought as the last of the buildings passed behind her and into the distance. _

_**&&&&&&&**_

_Finally!!_

He'd made it to the Land of Spring and Snow. It had been a rough trip. What with the many nuke-nin, highway bandits, hostile shinobi, Gato-style gangsters, and others causing him too many damn problems on his quest, Naruto had wondered if he would ever make it. To top it all off, there had been the run it with two members of the second tier of Akatsuki while he was just trying to eat a simple meal at a dimly lit tavern just across the border.

"Of all the… it just had to be that bastard Itachi and his new partner. Dammit!!", growled Naruto as his battered and bruised body staggered through the chest high snow drifts.

He remembered everything quite well. Upon entering the tavern to request a room for the night, Naruto had applied a henge to cover his distinctive features from some shinobi he sensed inside the building. Retrieving his room key after paying, Naruto had headed to his room to rest and bathe before returning up front to partake of the fare he could smell cooking in the kitchen. Stepping out after taking care of the necessities, he'd bumped into a couple heading up to the front. Making his apologies, Naruto started to step around the male of the couple only to find himself staring into a familiar pair of cold black eyes. There had been a second of recognition before Naruto felt the familiar effects of the Mangekyou Sharingan as it wove its usual Genjutsu. Luckily, Naruto had trained enough with Kakashi-sensei and his Sharingan to recognize the signs and had forced all of his chakra (both natural and demonic) out in a massive explosion that shattered the developing illusion that even impressed the elder of the traitorous Uchiha scions as evidenced by an eyebrow quirked in acknowledgement and the hint of an approving look on the usually emotionless face of the most familiar of the Konoha missing nins.

Gritting his teeth and forcing his way ever deeper into Snow Territory, Naruto continued his cussing. It felt somewhat cathartic to swear out loud to the questor. Now if only the damn blizzard would cease with these roaring winds so he could hear himself!!! He was pissed dammit, and his cursing couldn't be called therapeutic if he couldn't hear himself!!!

Steeling his resolve and with his sense of determination keeping him warm in this accursed weather, Naruto just leaned further into the howling wind and dancing snow and kept trudging, one foot in front of the other. Ever forward to a goal only he could see.

_**&&&&&**_

Koyuki Kazahana was sitting in front of the fireplace of her private chalet and relaxing. She'd arrived from her palace in the capital city over a week ago and had spent the first couple of days sleeping in and decompressing from her affairs of state. Free from wearing the robes of her position, she usually wore a warm sweater topping a pair of jeans and some cute pink boots she'd found during a shopping trip that she'd just had to have. Now sipping from a mug of hot apple-cinnamon cider and listening to the radio while watching the snow as it swirled around and fell in snowflakes of ever-increasing size, Koyuki felt fully relaxed for the first time in several months.

For the vacationing empress of Snow Country, today had been a day to laze around. The pantry was full of food, there were several logs of firewood stacked just outside her back door, and there was plenty of water. The cheerily blazing fire in the fireplace was keeping the first floor of the little chalet quite toasty and Koyuki enjoyed it. Earlier in the week she'd had to make her way to the center of town to pick up a few supplies and to send a batch of letters (including her reply to the letter Priestess Shion had sent her awhile back) while the lone shinobi mailman was in town for his weekly stop to drop-off and pick-up mail. At the time, the weather was pretty bad and Koyuki knew that if she didn't get her letters out now, she might not get another chance to send them out.

Pausing in her reading of an old copy of an Icha Icha novel, the twenty-five year old empress sighed. Marking her spot and closing the book, Koyuki rose from her seat and went over to the window. Crossing her arms over her chest and shivering slightly, she wondered where her golden knight was at that very moment. Shaking herself out of that somewhat melancholic mood, Koyuki returned to her seat and started to pick up her reading again. Putting it down on the end table, she instead reached for the wrapped up bundle of reports she'd been avoiding for the past few days.

Using a handy kunai knife, Koyuki carefully slit the ribbon binding the report scrolls together. Placing the bundle of scrolls on the coffee table in front of her, Koyuki reached for the first one while folding the ribbon up and putting it in her pocket. Maybe she'd find a use for it when she returned to the capital.

Seeing that the report in her hand was from the local waystation she'd had set up, Koyuki sighed and settled in to see how things were going.

It was late when Koyuki decided to call it a night. She'd finished reading the reports, read a few more chapters in her novel, eaten a warm meal of chicken and rice, started an official letter to the Daimyo of the Land of Water expressing her interest in a state visit, napped for a bit, went outside to retrieve some more wood for her fireplace, and basically enjoyed her vacation. Damping the fire till the coals glowed a dark orange, Koyuki shut off the lights and used a flickering candle to navigate her way upstairs where she changed out of her jeans and into a pair of woolen pajamas. Setting the candle on her nightstand, Koyuki climbed into bed. Snuggling up under the handmade blanket, Koyuki blew out the candle and closed her eyes.

**_&&&&&&&&&_**

As the empress was getting comfortable, a bedraggled figure staggered against the wind that was increasing in speed and tenacity. His clothes were tattered, his eyes glazed over with exhausted determination. What had been a dusting of blonde peach fuzz adorning his cheeks and the space beneath his nose had grown into a full beard and moustache of sun-kissed blonde; though both were coated in snow and ice. On his head in place of his hitai-ate was a dirty orange bandanna keeping his ever-growing hair out of his blue-eyes.

It had been two weeks since he'd crossed the border into the Land of Snow. In those two weeks, Naruto had been trying to figure out where in this vast land Koyuki-hime was. With the weather as bad as it was, he figured that she might not be in the palace and had not even headed in the direction of the capital city. Following his gut, Naruto angled further north knowing that he was going further into the storm that was tearing through this land and blasting it with an almost continuous snowfall. On his way, he'd found and helped out several travelers by giving them some of his dwindling supplies and forming one of his shadow clones to help them reach the nearest shelter. Sadly, Naruto had also come across some of those for whom help had been too late. All he could do for them was dig them a shallow grave and make a note of its location along with the names of the travelers if he was able to find some sort of identification on those cold corpses. A scroll he carried with him noted the locations of the graves he'd dug as well as the names of those buried there that he'd pass on to the wayward empress.

During his moments of solitude, Naruto wondered why he would go through such an icy hell for such an escape artist. Was it because he promised her that he'd always find her, or was it something more to it? He didn't know and it occasionally frustrated him. He was about to revisit these confusing thoughts when his nose caught the scent of burning logs. Looking up Naruto saw that there was a building a few hundred yards away. Through his snow goggles he spotted the wisp of smoke lazily floating away from the chimney only to be caught by the winds and dispersed. Changing his direction, Naruto headed towards the building. Before he could take a step, he had to stop for a moment and convince his exhausted body that now was not a good time to lie down and stretch out in the snow to sleep for a moment. He knew that if he gave in to that temptation, he'd die. Forcing himself to take one step, then another, and another in the direction of the building, Naruto forced down his weariness and directed his consciousness to block out all other external stimuli and focus his concentration on the building.

Every step he took was sheer torture. Every breath of the icy air through his mask was like a sharpened senbon needle piercing his throat. The speed of the wind increased exponentially as it tried to blow the figure who dared to stand against the icy breath of the dragon. But Naruto doggedly kept on, even when the wind shrieked in anger and hid the building that was his salvation from view as sheets of snow continued to fall. So determined was this now twenty year old shinobi to reach his destination that everything else was forced out of his mind. The scathing remarks of his tenant, the bitter cold, the howling winds, the darkness of night, and the healed cuts he'd received on this expedition; nothing was keeping him from reaching this shelter for the evening.

So focused on his destination, Naruto never felt it when he stepped from the snow covered ground to the wooden deck surrounding the building his senses was telling him was some sort of small chalet. Staggering up to the door, Naruto attempted to raise his hand to knock on the door. Unfortunately he misjudged his distance and instead of knocking with his hand, Naruto stumbled and fell face first towards the door, smashing his nose against the wood in the process. This sudden impact had the effect of shaking Naruto out of his lethargy for a moment. Sighing in a silent victory for reaching his destination, Naruto slowly turned around to face the direction he'd come. Already, his tracks were being blown away by the winds howled in anger at his success.

Raising a clenched fist, Naruto shook it at the wind and snow.

"I beat you, you bastard! _I Beat You! _Nothing's going to stop me in my quest, you hear me, Hyorinmaru you Son of a Bitch!! _Nothing's gonna beat me!!_ Not you or any pissant wind you send my way! _Nothing!", _yelled Naruto in a voice ravaged by cold weather and non-use.

Collapsing to the ground with his back against the door, Naruto laughed, although it came out more as a croak than the laugh he was known for. As he laughed, the weariness and exhaustion caught up with him. Now that he was out of the direct path of the wind, he could set for a spell. Watching the dancing snow with tears of joy freezing on his face, Naruto started to drift off into a light doze.

**_&&&&&&&_**

As Naruto dozed, the occupant of the chalet stormed angrily downstairs with her candle leading the way. Koyuki was not happy. She had just been drifting off to sleep when she'd heard a loud thump against her back door. Shaking it off as a clump of snow dislodged from the chalet eaves, Koyuki had closed her eyes and started to drift back into la-la land, only to be rudely roused by the strangled shouting heard right outside the door. Scared at first because of the lateness of the hour then angered because whomever it was who had the gall to do such a thing, Koyuki grabbed the kunai her bodyguards had insisted she have and stuck it in the pocket of her pj's, jumped out of bed, and stormed down the stairs only stopping to grab the oaken club at the foot of the stairs.

Heading for the door with mayhem on her mind, Koyuki placed the candle holder on the table after blowing out the flickering candle. Stepping up to the door, she reached over and flipped the switch for the porch light and tightly gripped the club. Grasping the door knob, the empress psyched herself up for what was to come.

Slowly turning the knob so as not to alert the person on the other side of the door, Koyuki stepped back and jerked the door open. As the door came open, Koyuki caught a glimpse of a falling figure and swung her club with all of her strength….

**_&&&&&&_**

……and felt the club miss as he tumbled through the door that-seconds ago-he'd been leaning against to regain his strength before knocking on the door and requesting shelter for the evening. Coming to an abrupt stop against an unknown impediment to his rearward travel, Naruto opened his eyes and looked up. Up into a pair of the angriest eyes he'd ever seen.

Glaring down at the interloper who dared interrupt her vacation, Koyuki started to speak. Before she could, the bearded stranger gazed up at her with his exhausted eyes and offered up a grin.

"Excuse me lady, are the Snow Goddess of Death or are you the Snow Angel of Life?", asked the young man before he passed out.

Shaking her head in frustration Koyuki leaned her club up against the table and bent down to drag the man inside out of the horrible weather. She may be cold-blooded and ruthless as the Empress of the Land of Spring and Snow but right now she wasn't the empress, she was just plain ole Koyuki Kazahana.

Sighing to herself, Koyuki dragged the man further inside before closing the door to shut out the gale force winds.

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_And on that note, the fifth chapter of 'Promises in Snow and Ice' comes to a close, several months after it was supposed to be finished and posted online. _

_Once again, I thank those of you who've waited this long for me to finish this chapter. In the intervening time since the posting of chapter 4, I've received several emails regarding those who've added this saga to their favorites list as well as to those who've subscribed to this story. I am deeply grateful for your continued interest. I deeply apologize for making you wait so long for this chapter. I also thank my most awesome beta-reader Lovesrainscent for prereading this story. Though she hasn't gotten back to me about corrections and additions to this chapter, I trust her to let me know whereupon I will make the corrections and additions before reposting this chapter. _

_The way I ended this chapter had me vexed for the longest time. I didn't know and couldn't figure out whether to end the chapter with Naruto's words or with Koyuki's actions. I ask you, the readers, for your input on the choice I ultimately made. _

_On a side note, I realized several chapters ago that I had screwed up and made the Konohamaru Corps (Konohamaru, Moegi, and Udon) genin when they should be at least Chuunin or Tokubetsu Jounin by now. Once I finish this story, I will probably return to that part and correct it! By the way, could somebody answer me this, aren't Moegi and Udon grandchildren of Koharu and Homura? I'm curious about that and can't remember their family names at this time. _

_On another side note, Chapter Five finishes the interaction of Hyuuga Hanabi and my OC Zaiden of the Hidden Jungle Village for now. Though they may have cameos in later chapters, their story branches off into a side arc of its own that may yet see the light of day once 'Promises in Snow and Ice' is finished. _

_Once again, I deeply thank the patience of the readers of this story for sticking around I once again apologize for the extreme tardiness of this chapter. To the reader who reviewed and mentioned that it had been nine months since I've last updated, though I addressed that in a private message to you, I will also address that here in my end of chapter notes: _

"_Yes I know that it has been nine months or more since 'Promises' Chapter 4 appeared, but in the time since then, I've had to work my way out of numerous plot holes and other things that affected my writing as well as deal with certain events that have happened in my life job-wise. There are times when I've sat in front of my screen looking at this story for hours trying to come up with the next sentence. Please give me a break since I'm writing all of this from the top of my head and not using an outline (I hate writing outlines. Didn't write one and can't work from one to save my life!). Though I do ask for your forgiveness and the forgiveness from the other readers, I do ask that you please refrain from chastising my tardiness. There may be times when it takes me over a year to update a story and there may be a time when I update a story pretty quickly. All I ask is to just be patient. For now, I consider your chastisement forgotten and will not bring it up again. I hope you do the same. Sincerely, Knightewolfe."_

_To the rest of my readers, within the next few days time allowing, I will start on Chapter Six of 'Promises of Snow in Ice'. Most of the time, I usually don't post one chapter unless I have written down a third of the next chapter. This is an exception to my usual way of posting. Hopefully, it won't take as long for me to get Chapter Six out as it did to get Chapter Five to you. Since I've finished this chapter and brought the two protagonists together, things should move much faster. _

In the next Chapter, after I get some things situated, I'm going to jump ahead a bit in the timeline of this story. How far I've jumped ahead, you'll find out when Chapter Six is posted! For now, the Knightewolfe is signing out.

Please enjoy this chapter.

Knightewolfe

_Knightewolfe's Lair 3/10_


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